Using individual and couple interviews, this qualitative work examined relational maintenance behaviors of 13 African-American dual-career couples. Findings reveal that study participants employed a variety of routine and strategic behaviors which they identified as relevant to maintaining marital satisfaction and stability. Couples distinguished between strategies in their daily interactions and those implemented for the long-term sustainment of their marriages. Couples also engaged a series of repair behaviors designed to restore the marital relationship once a transgression occurred. A new category of maintenance was discovered as useful for these African-American couples -- seek a spiritual connection. Each finding is discussed in regard to how it advances understanding of relational maintenance behaviors. / Ph. D.

Duas dimensões afetam fortemente a vida das pessoas, o trabalho e a família. A dual career, favorece a relação trabalho-família, pois o envolvimento dos cônjuges no atendimento das demandas das duas esferas possibilita o avanço da carreira ao mesmo tempo em que se ajustam na vida familiar. Estar seguro nessa relação endossa a prontidão para lidar com as mudanças de carreiras. A adaptabilidade de carreira envolve a capacidade de um indivíduo de usar vários recursos para lidar com mudanças na carreira. Dessa forma, a fim de conhecer os recursos que as pessoas casadas utilizam para se ajustar ao mundo dinâmico atual, este trabalho propôs-se a compreender como se dão as configurações familiares de pessoas casadas na relação dual career, sob o enfoque da adaptabilidade de carreira? Com base no objetivo proposto, foi realizada uma pesquisa descritiva e quantitativa, com 634 participantes, dos quais 331 pessoas eram casadas e com filhos e 303 pessoas eram casadas e sem filhos. Os resultados foram obtidos pela análise descritiva de dados, utilizando-se a Análise Fatorial Exploratória e análise de conglomerados (cluster). Os resultados a partir dos grupos com filhos e sem filhos revelaram os seguintes agrupamentos: casados com filhos; resolvidos, balanceados, desamparados e desapaixonados. Para o grupo de pessoas casadas e sem filhos outros quatro agrupamentos se destacam, sendo: os indiferentes, desapegados, influenciados e apegados. Os resultados obtidos permitiram caracterizar o perfil de pessoas casadas com filhos e sem filhos, verificando quais deles demonstraram domínios de adaptabilidade de carreira quando relacionadas a perspectiva da dual career. Para aqueles que sentem o apoio (do cônjuge ou organizacional), a adaptabilidade de carreira é percebida, demonstrando que a cooperação e o suporte social estimulam o acesso aos recursos de enfrentamento interno e reforçam as respostas apropriadas as decisões de carreira. / Two dimensions strongly affect the lives of people, work and family. The dual career favors the work-family relationship, since the involvement of the spouses in meeting the demands of the two spheres makes it possible to advance the career while adjusting for family life. Being secure in this relationship endorses readiness to cope with career changes. Career adaptability refers to the ability of an individual to use various resources to deal with career changes. Thus, in order to know the resources which married people use to adjust to the current dynamic world, this study aims to verify how the family configurations of married people work in the dual career relationship, under the approach of career adaptability. Based on the objective, a descriptive and quantitative survey was conducted with 634 participants, of whom 331 were married with children and 303 people were married without children. The results were obtained through descriptive data analysis, using exploratory factorial analysis and cluster analysis. The results from the groups with children and without children revealed the following groupings: married with children; resolved, balanced, helpless and dispassionate. For the group of married without children, four other groups stand out: the indifferent, detached, influenced and attached. The results obtained allowed to characterize the profile of married people with children and without children, verifying which of them demonstrated domains of career adaptability when related to the perspective of the dual career. For those who feel the support (of the spouse or organizational), career adaptability is perceived, demonstrating that cooperation and social support stimulate access to internal coping resources and reinforce appropriate responses to career decisions.

本研究旨在探讨工作家庭交互作用与匹配领域的变量之间的关系，即，工作家庭交互作用与一开始引发它的领域中的两个结果变量(满意度和绩效)之间的关系。本研究共有三个研究问题:(1)这种匹配领域的关系是否能推广到中国样本中? (2)工作家庭交互作用和满意度/绩效之间，到底谁是因谁是果? (3)在这个过程中，情绪是否有中介作用? 研究一在一个教师群体中采用横断面研究，并发现在控制了交互领域(即工作家庭交互作用的被影响的领域)的作用之后，匹配领域的关系在满意度上仍然显著，但是在绩效这个因变量上不显著。研究二在一个以孩子家长组成的样本中采用一个周期为两周的日记法以及间隔时间为一周的跨时间的数据进行交互验证，并发现是匹配领域中的满意度导致了工作家庭交互作用，而不是反过来。并且发现对于绩效来说，只有交互领域的关系是显著的，并且在这个关系中，绩效是果而不是因。对于情绪的作用，研究结果并不一致。基于以上结果，对研究意义、不足和展望进行了讨论。 / This study focused on the matching-domain relationship in work-family interface (WFI), i.e., the relationship between WFI and two outcome variables of satisfaction and performance in the originating domain. There were three research questions:(1) whether such relationship could be generalized in Chinese samples;(2) what was the causal relationship between the variables; and (3) whether emotions could mediate such relationship. Study 1 was a cross-sectional research conducted with Chinese teacher. We found that after controlling the cross-domain (i.e., the receiving domain) relationship, the matching-domain effect of WFI was still significant on satisfaction but not on performance. Study 2 consisted of a two-week daily diary data and a one-week interval cross-time data on a group of Chinese parents. It cross-validated that it was the matching-domain satisfaction caused WFI but not the reversed. Also, we found that performance was only significant in the cross-domain relationship and WFI was the cause rather than the result in this relationship. Finding on the role of emotions on the aforesaid relationship was inconsistent. Implications, limitations and future directions were discussed based on the above findings. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Cao, Hui. / "November 2011." / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2012. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 112-123). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstract also in Chinese; appendixes in Chinese. / Acknowledgements --- p.IV / Table of Contents --- p.V / List of Tables --- p.VII / List of Figures --- p.IX / English Abstract --- p.II / Chinese Abstract --- p.III / Chapter Chapter 1 --- Literature Review --- p.1 / Concept of work-family interface --- p.2 / Summary on the concept of work-family interface --- p.10 / Framework of Work-family Interface --- p.15 / Chapter Chapter 2 --- The Present Study --- p.23 / Research question 1: the phenomenon of matching-domain relationship between WFI and outcome variables --- p.23 / Hypotheses on the phenomenon of matching-domain hypothesis in Chinese sample --- p.29 / Research question 2: the causal relationship between WFI and matching-domain satisfaction/performance --- p.30 / Hypotheses on the causal relationship between WFI and matching-domain satisfaction/performance --- p.35 / Research question 3: the mediation effect of emotion --- p.36 / Design of the present study --- p.38 / Chapter Chapter 3 --- Study 1: Cross-Sectional Study --- p.41 / Method --- p.42 / Results --- p.46 / Discussion --- p.56 / Chapter Chapter 4 --- Study 2: Daily Diary Study --- p.61 / Methods --- p.61 / Results --- p.73 / Discussion --- p.94 / Chapter Chapter 5 --- General Discussion --- p.100 / Summary of the Results --- p.100 / Implications --- p.103 / Limitations --- p.106 / Future directions --- p.108 / References --- p.112 / Chapter Appendix 1 --- The Chinese Version of Work-family Interface Scale used in Study I and Posttest of Study 2 --- p.124 / Chapter Appendix 2 --- The Chinese Version of Work Satisfaction Scale, Family Satisfaction Scale, Work performance Scale, and Family Performance Scale used in Study 1 and Posttets of Study 2 --- p.125

"December 2003." / Thesis (Ed.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 441-475). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, MI : ProQuest Information and Learning Company, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Mode of access: World Wide Web. / Abstracts in English and Chinese.

The present study examined the relationship between work involvement and family involvement and work-family conflict in dual-career families. Four hundred thirty-six couples (436 females; 436 males; N = 872) in dual-career relationships were recruited from a bank organization in the Northwest United States. The survey questionnaire contained three sections to measure work and family involvement, work-family conflict, and sociodemographic information. Data analyses were conducted using multiple regression analysis and a 1 X 4 ANOV A to examine the proposed relationships among the study variables. Results demonstrated the following: across study participants, work involvement accounted for a significant amount of variance in work-family conflict; family involvement accounted for a significant amount of variance in work-family conflict; the number of dependents accounted for a significant amount of variance in work-family conflict; work-family conflict was significantly higher for females than for males; and couples who were symmetric in both work involvement and family involvement experienced lower levels of work-family conflict than couples who were asymmetric in both work involvement and family involvement. The test of the effects of one's spouse/partner's work involvement and one's spouse/partner's family involvement on the individual's work-family conflict was not significant. An examination of the moderating effects of the number of dependents and age of youngest (or only) child on the relationships between work involvement and family involvement and work-family conflict was not significant. Implications of the study and future research ideas are discussed.

With dual-career couples comprising the most common family type, it is important for mental health professionals, employers, and policy makers to understand the unique challenges of this population (Haddock et al., 2001; Saginak & Saginak, 2005.) Numerous researchers have studied the consequences of family and work role strain for dual-career couples. However, when dual-career couples are able to share responsibilities and negotiate degendered roles they experience the benefits of dual-career couples. The literature clearly supports the importance of egalitarian roles for marital satisfaction and life satisfaction of dual-career couples. While researchers have studied social role strain, gender role strain, marital satisfaction, and life satisfaction and discussed the importance of degendered roles and responsibilities for dual-career couples, no studies have examined gender ideology. Saginak and Saginak (2005) called for researchers to investigate how gender ideologies and the gender socialization process perpetuate the challenges faced by dual-career couples in balancing work and family. This study investigated the associations between gender ideology and gender role strain, job-family role strain, marital satisfaction, and life satisfaction among 70 individual members of dual-career couples. A multivariate analysis of variance was utilized to investigate the relationship between gender ideology and the criterion measures. Gender ideology was partially associated with gender role strain with the androgynous gender ideology group scoring significantly lower on gender role strain than the masculine or undifferentiated gender ideology groups but not significantly lower than the feminine gender ideology group. Gender ideology was not associated with job-family role strain or marital satisfaction. In addition, gender ideology was also partially associated with life satisfaction with the androgynous gender ideology group scoring significantly higher on quality of life than the masculine or undifferentiated gender ideology groups but not significantly higher than the feminine gender ideology group. Thus, the current study indicates there are partial associations between gender ideology and gender role strain and life satisfaction for dual-career couples. Mental health professionals, employers, and policy makers working with dual-career couples should assess the socially constructed gender norms and expectations internalized by individuals into a gender ideology as the possible source of challenges experienced by the dual-career couple.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2003. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 138-148). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago, Dept. of Sociology, August 2003. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2003. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 138-148). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (M.A.)--Baylor University, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 31-34).