Theories of work commitment suggest that gender differences exist in the parenthood-work commitment relationship (Meeker, 1983). Differences in men's and women's family role identification presumably account for gender differences in the parenthood-work commitment relationship. Men, because of their strong identification with the provider role, presumably perceive additional wage earning responsibilities once they become parents and, therefore, increase their work commitment (Baruch & Barnett, 1987). Alternatively, women presumably identify with the caregiver role which leads them to decrease their work commitment (Gutek, Searle, & Klepa, 1991). Research on gender differences in the parenthood-work commitment relationship, however, has produced mixed results (Lorence, 1987). Furthermore, researchers have failed to consider potential change in societal gender role definitions. Using a sample of employed Tulane University alumni with at least one child age 12 or younger living with them, the present study examined the extent to which men and women identify with the provider and caregiver roles. As expected, men identified more strongly with the provider role than women whereas women identified more strongly with the caregiver role than men. The present study also examined the relationship between family role identification and organizational commitment. As expected, provider role identification predicted continuance commitment and no gender differences were found in this relationship. Contrary to prediction, no relationship was found between provider role identification and affective commitment. This study also predicted that satisfaction with child care arrangements, rather than caregiver role identification, influences organizational commitment. The results showed that satisfaction with the quality and the hours available for child care predicted affective commitment whereas satisfaction with the cost and location of child care predicted continuance commitment. Caregiver role identification had no effect on affective or continuance commitment. Finally, caregiver role identification was expected to moderate the relationship between satisfaction with child care arrangements and affective and continuance commitment. No support was found for this hypothesis / acase@tulane.edu

Very little is known about the lives of adolescent fathers and less is known about their relationship with their children. From a developmental perspective, these 'youngest parents' (Coles, et al., 1997) are compromised, conflicted and disadvantaged in their capacities and skills to care for their children. This study attempted to deepen our understanding of the bond between the adolescent father and his child The theoretical foundation for this study emerges from the question: What intrinsic factors motivate and contribute to the adolescent father's involvement with his child? The conceptual underpinning for this rests on the basic psychoanalytic and psychodynamic processes of internalization and identification, i.e., those traits, behaviors, thoughts, feelings and attitudes incorporated into the adolescent father's sense of self through early and on-going psychological processes with his parents (Moore & Fine, 1990). The study's conceptual base rests on how these processes contribute to the quality and constancy of the adolescent father's involvement with his child Unfortunately, research on adolescent fathers lags far behind the extensive body of knowledge on adolescent mothers. While there has been important research on the involvement of adolescent fathers with their children, the majority of these studies draw from samples of low income, inner-city minority populations. This study addressed a gap in the literature by researching the attachment patterns of adolescent fathers taken from a broad cross-section across all socio-economic levels From a subject population (N = 86) of adolescent fathers, aged 17 to 21 years, this study examined the impact of four categories of independent variables: (1) The demographic variable of adolescent father education level; (2) relationship with ones parents; (3) relationship with child's mother; and (4) involvement in the pregnancy and birthing experience on a composite dependent variable, involvement. Involvement in this study is conceptualized to comprise four components: (1) Involvement Sub-scale 1 (2) parental satisfaction, (3) time with child and (4) activity with child. Additionally, the impact of the independent variables on a fifth dependent variable, a combination of the four dependent variables, was also tested. Standard multiple regression was used to determine the effect of these four categories of independent variables on the adolescent father's involvement with his child The study results validated and reconfirmed the importance of the adolescent father's relationship with the child's mother and involvement in the pregnancy and birthing experience as predictors of involvement with his child. An inverse relationship was detected between the level of the adolescent father's education and his involvement with his child. Relationship with one's parents did not show statistical significance as a predictor of involvement 1Involvement Subscale refers here to one of the four measures of the main dependent variable, Involvement. When it appears in the text, it will always be referred to as Involvement Subscale to distinguish it from the parent dependent variable, Involvement / acase@tulane.edu

This dissertation investigates the marital power relationships displayed among men and women from the Northern Mexican cities of Monterrey and Ciudad Juarez. I address five questions: (1) what is the influence of women's employment status on power decision-making? (2) are power relationships changing between generations? (3) what are the power processes displayed? (4) are women more powerful than men in some arenas, sites, or times? and (5) who has control over resources, the power to define roles, positions, and the right to make and enact decisions? The literature of familial power began with the study of American couples by Blood and Wolfe (1960). They analyze the influence of characteristics and resources (e.g., age, socioeconomic status) and the patterns of decision-making in specific areas (e.g., husband's choice of car). However, most studies have shown some theoretical and methodological weaknesses. The definition of power overlooks power as the ability to influence someone. Second, there is a misunderstanding of how and why decisions are made. Third, most studies have only interviewed wives because it is more convenient (McDonald, 1980). Finally, most studies have defined power from a Western point of view The participants in this study were a non-representative purposive sample of low-income men and women. I conducted 46 in-depth interviews to describe differences of power process (manifest, latent, and invisible) across generations, gender, and occupational status. Additionally, I used a standardized questionnaire to obtain general demographic information and quantitative measure of decision-making and household division of labor I found that women's employment status influences the patterns of decision-making at home. Employed women were more likely to use manifest power to challenge their husband's power. However, women's employment in itself does not represent a real resource if a woman or/and her husband do not give meaning to that resource. There were generational differences in the patterns of decision-making. I could not find meaningful differences between the two regions; regional differences were only important in people's perception of women's norms and values. Men's and women's strategies varied across the different areas of decision-making. Finally, mothers' support influences daughter's patterns of decision-making / acase@tulane.edu

Parental divorce can lead to serious and persistent problems in children. In an effort to minimize these problems, divorce parenting seminars were developed to improve understanding of the effects of divorce on their children, prevent negative adjustments associated with parental divorce, and reduce the number of times that divorcing parents return to court to litigate children's issues. This study evaluates the effectiveness of three parenting seminars in reducing relitigation rates. Seminars included in this study are Children Cope with Divorce, Focus on Children, and Children in the Middle. This research evaluates overall effectiveness of parenting seminars in reducing relitigation rates by comparing the relitigation rates of a group of divorcing parents who have attended a parenting seminar (N = 327) and a group composed of divorced parents who did not attend a seminar (N = 294). The study also compared effectiveness between the seminars in reducing relitigation rates (Focus on Children, N = 85, Children in the Middle, N = 127, Children Cope with Divorce, N = 115) All three seminars have similar content, but different formats. To determine if specific seminars benefit individuals who have specific relationship styles, a subscale of the ENRICH Scales was administered to a subsample (N = 137) of the treatment group. The ENRICH subscales used were Style of Communication, Style of Conflict Resolution, and Level of Marital Satisfaction. Subjects also completed demographic questionnaires for descriptive purposes and to determine if any demographic variables affected relitigation rates Results indicate that only one seminar, Children Cope with Divorce, reduced relitigation rates at a statistically significant level. Results also found no relationship between the scores on the subscales, the seminar attended, and relitigation rates. Findings did indicate that there was a positive relationship between the level of marital satisfaction and relitigation rates independent of the seminars. No demographic variables were found to affect the number of times that divorcing parents returned to court. Limitations and suggestions for future research are also included / acase@tulane.edu

Sociologists and policy analysts depict many poor and low-income communities as matriarchal female domains. Nevertheless, many men reside and participate in these communities. Unfortunately, researchers and policy makers often misconceive of public housing as female-headed, male-absent households. So this dissertation ask whether men are really missing or are social scientists and policy makers just unable to find them. This dissertation sheds light on this question by examining residential and affiliation patterns of black men in a low-income public housing neighborhood in New Orleans. Using qualitative methods that include participant observation, in-depth interviews, focus groups and genealogies, this research explores the presence of men in a public housing neighborhood and their financial and non-financial contributions to families, households and the neighborhood at large / acase@tulane.edu

This exploratory study examined gender differences within two residual phenomena of previously infertile married partners whose first child was a biological child born after the period of infertility. The first question addressed in the study was the parenting style used by these parents with their child. The second question addressed was the extent to which these married partners evidenced a sense of loss after giving birth to a child. The sample consisted of 114 participants, 56 males and 58 females. The participants were median adults who were well-educated and had an average annual income which placed them within the middle class socioeconomically. They were predominantly Caucasian. Results indicated that there were no gender differences in the parenting style used by the married partners in this study. Both males and females tended to view themselves as authoritative in their style of parenting. The results also indicated that there were gender differences in the amount of grief experienced and in the specific aspects of grief assessed by the inventory. Females tended to evidence a stronger sense of loss or grief than the males. Possible explanations for the gender differences were explored and recommendations were made for future research regarding the residual effects of infertility. Implications were made for social work practice / acase@tulane.edu

In the context of Family Systems theory, the purpose of this study was to identify differences in the perceived Family of Origin experiences of college students with disabilities versus non-disabled college students. The study was based on the assumption that college students with disabilities, as compared to non-disabled college students, have a unique family of origin experience which results in distinct patterns of personality. More specifically, differences between perceived family of origin experiences in students with disabilities and non-disabled college students were hypothesized with respect to learned helplessness, locus of control, and self-concept. / A secondary purpose was to identify differences among specific disabilities (blindness, neurological, and learning disabilities), with respect to the four dependent variables. The overall differences between students with disabilities and non-disabled students for the four dependent variables were tested using Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA). The test of individual hypothesized differences between groups on the four dependent variables was expanded to include a test for possible main effects or interaction for gender. The within group correlations among the four dependent variables were tested using Pearson Product-Moment Correlation. The correlations of the four dependent variables within the total college students with disability group indicated no significant relationship. The only exception was a positive and significant correlation between learned helplessness and low self-concept (r =.17, p $<$.05). / Questionnaires were completed by 72 college students with disabilities and 74 non-disabled students for a total sample of 146 students. All students were enrolled at Florida State University during the Fall, 1988. The hypothesis was supported with an overall significant difference between groups for all variables (F (1,145) = 9.36, p $<$.01). A significant difference among the three disabilities was found only for Locus of Control (p $<$.05). / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 53-03, Section: A, page: 0956. / Major Professor: Murray Krantz. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1991.

This study examined family functioning and locus of control in home-school families as compared to families in the traditional educational settings of public and private elementary schools. It was a partly-randomized, quasi experimental design with one experimental group (Home-school) and two control groups (Public and Private school). The purpose of the study was to compare home-school families versus public and private school families across the dimensions of family functioning, and locus of control. A minimum of thirty families from each group were randomly surveyed. / The dependent variables consisted of the seven sub-scales of the Family Assessment Device (FAD) (problem solving, roles, affective response, affective involvement, behavior control, communication, and general functioning) cohesion and adaptability (of FACES III) and locus of control (Rotter's scale). The types of educational setting (home-school, private, or public school) served as the independent variables. Multiple analysis of variance (MANOVA) procedure was used to analyze the dependent variables among the three family samples. / The home-school group was found to be significantly different from at least one of the control groups on all hypotheses tested. All sample groups were considered to be healthily functioning families. The home-school group most closely resembled the public school group with regards to the hypotheses. It was speculated that the effectiveness with which the home-school families functioned resulted from a systemic adaptation made in response to the added instrumental task of education placed upon the family. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 52-11, Section: B, page: 6071. / Major Professor: Calvin Zongker. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1991.

This dissertation applies the human capital model to explain school retention decisions of teenagers. The probability of school retention among children ages 15 through 19 in 1960 and 1980 is determined using logistic regression. Census of the Population data is analyzed for young men and women, separately. / Changes in the probability of school retention as well as variations in the significance of explanatory variables over time are examined. Consequences of changes in social, political and legal preferences in the twenty year period are measured with respect to the explanatory variables included in the model. / The results of this dissertation suggest that maternal education, family income, family size and status, and full-time, long-term maternal employment are important determinants of a child's decision to remain in school. Teenagers living in an intact family other than the first marriage or in a single-parent headed household are less likely to remain in school. The model specifies a mother's employment by the duration of the work over time as well as the full-time nature of the employment. With the exception of teenage pregnancy and marriage among young women, the determinants of school retention diminish in importance with additional maternal education. / Finally, given the trends in the distribution of children by maternal education, maternal labor force participation, and family status, the opportunity costs faced by teenagers as well as the quantity and quality of parental inputs received suggest a negative impact on future school retention decisions. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 53-03, Section: A, page: 0910. / Major Professor: James D. Gwartney. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1992.

The purpose of this study was to examine the clustering effect of work and family role stressors and strain, mediated by family resource and coping strategy, on quality of life using the Double ABCX model. On the basis of previous literature and stress theory, the theoretical model was specified, estimated, and evaluated for adequacy of statistical fit for samples of Korean-American dual-earner families in Los Angeles, California. Separate estimates for 153 wives and 117 husbands were obtained using LISREL analysis. / Although the initial model was not supported by the data, the revised model fitted the data adequately for wives and husbands, respectively. In the revised model, there was reciprocal effect of family system resource and coping strategy for wives. For husbands, there was the direct effect of family role stressor on family system resource. / The theoretical model for wives also represented a generalization of family stress theory while the model for husbands did not. That is, wives' work-family role strain was intensified by the amount of work and family role stressors. Also, family system resource was an important mediating factor in decreasing work-family role strain and in increasing quality or life for the wives of Korean-American dual-earner families. For the husbands, however, neither work-family role strain or family system resource acted as a mediating factor. This study contributed to the literature in work-family role strain and family stress theory, and should be of interest to researchers and family life educators. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 53-04, Section: A, page: 1287. / Major Professor: Elizabeth B. Goldsmith. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1991.