This research explores the life experiences of families and couples who lived through the Wangary fire (South Australia, January 2005). Examining the bushfire experience from a domestic perspective is long overdue. Open-ended interviews were conducted with thirty-eight couples and families across the fire-affected region on the Lower Eyre Peninsula. A shortlist of fourteen were analysed in detail and they form the foundation of this thesis. These bushfire narratives include the perspectives of farming and non-farming families and cover a wide spectrum of circumstances and demographics. Five of the fourteen families lost their homes in the Wangary fire. Critical decision-making and the presence of children is at the heart of this case study. How the presence of babies and young children influences family decision-making, in advance of or during a bushfire, has not been considered or studied in any detail within the Australian research landscape. Exploring the differences of experience between women with young families and older women confirms the primary weakness of the national bushfire safety ('stay or go') policy. Gender and generation were the two defining factors that informed how people responded to and recovered from the Wangary fire. The perspective of younger people, within the context of bushfire research, has been neglected in the past; this case study incorporates their views and thoughts. It is hoped that insights gleaned from these bushfire narratives will encourage the enhancement of the national 'stay or go' policy.

Changes in work and family roles as more women are entering the work force prompt a re-examination of how couples make work and family decisions. Research confirms that influence is an important component of the decision-making process. Because of the recent changes in women's paid work roles, women may now use more influence strategies than when they were not in the paid work force in such large numbers. From a family decision-making perspective, investigations of the different influence strategies used in making work and family decisions have not occurred in past research. The purpose of this study was to investigate how couples make work and family decisions, examining the impact of gender role traditionality and influence strategies used in decision making. In addition, the association between influence strategies with marital satisfaction was investigated. The sample of this study consisted of 61 couples who had made a work and family decision in the past 6 months. A mail questionnaire was developed assessing the husbands' and wives' use of different influence strategies from Spiro (1983), their gender role traditionality, their satisfaction of the outcome of the decision, and marital satisfaction. The first research question addressed gender role traditionality and influence strategies. Pearson's correlations indicate that traditional wives were more likely to use reward\referent influence than nontraditional wives and that traditional husbands were more likely to use legitimate influence than nontraditional husbands. Also, the connection between gender role traditionality, influence strategies, and decision making satisfaction was investigated. Using hierarchial regression, decision outcome satisfaction accounted for 24 percent of the variance in wives' marital satisfaction. Furthermore, prediction of wives' marital satisfaction was improved 16 percent with the inclusion of influence strategies and gender role ideology to the model. Results for wives found their marital satisfaction to be greater if they used less emotional and legitimate influence but more reward\referent and impression management influences. A similar model was attempted on husband's marital satisfaction with decision making satisfaction, influence strategies, and gender role traditionality. This model accounted for 8 percent of the variance. These findings suggest that a relationship exists between gender role traditionality and the use of different influence strategies for both husbands and wives. For wives, decision making satisfaction, the use of different influence strategies, and gender role ideology all had an effect on their marital satisfaction. / Graduation date: 1991

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Heavy episodic drinking (HED) among college students remains a significant public health concern in the United States, particularly among first-year students. Parents have been identified as a protective factor in college students' drinking behaviors and past parent-based interventions have been successful at reducing HED. However, there are a limited number of parent-based alcohol prevention strategies and a general lack of research on parent-child communication about alcohol use among first-year college students, particularly from the parent perspective. The three studies included in this dissertation assist in filling this gap by examining parent-college student communication about alcohol from a parents' perspective and identifying implications for future parent-based interventions. Study 1 classified parents into segments based on constructs from the Theory of Normative Social Behavior (TNSB), differences in parents' perceptions of student's alcohol use, and content of communication. A modification of the TNSB was used in Study 2 to explore intrapersonal and interpersonal factors that moderate the relationship between parents' descriptive norms related to students' alcohol use and the breadth of topics covered when they communicate with their college student about alcohol. Finally, building upon the first two studies, Study 3 used the Model of Family Decision Making (MFDM) to provide a contextual understanding of parents' communication about alcohol with their first-year college student. Studies 1 and 2 used a web survey conducted in 2010, 2011, and 2012 with a random sample of parents of first-year college students (N = 890) at a large Midwestern university. Results of a K means cluster analysis from Study 1 identified three parent clusters using constructs from TNSB. In Study 2, hierarchical linear regression analyses were conducted to explore what constructs of TNSB predicted parents' communication about alcohol, including descriptive norms, injunctive norms, outcome expectations, communication efficacy, and perceptions of severity and susceptibility of the negative consequences associated with alcohol use for their student. The study found the relationship between descriptive norms and parents' communication was moderated by injunctive norms, outcome expectations related to communication, and parents' perceptions of their student's susceptibility to negative consequences associated with alcohol use. Study 3 used qualitative interviews to further explore parents' communication about alcohol with their first-year college student. Using MFDM as a guide, Study 3 found several factors influenced parents' communication about alcohol with their student including role, skills, social structure, awareness, norms, utilization of resources, and other constraints. While parents reported talking about appropriate drinking behavior, the negative consequences of alcohol use, family experiences with alcohol, and family values and rules related to alcohol with their student, they often presented mixed messages, such as identifying drinking underage as illegal, but also describing the behavior as "typical." Across all three studies, it was evident parents held misperceptions of other college students' drinking behaviors and were likely underestimating their own students' alcohol use. The studies in this dissertation provide further understanding of the frequency and content of this communication and provide insight on how theoretical constructs can guide future parents-based interventions.

Doctor of Philosophy / School of Family Studies and Human Services / Karen S. Myers-Bowman / Perceptions of family influence as a source of motivation to attend college were explored. More specifically, the purpose of this study was to investigate how, and in what ways, families shaped the pathway to higher education among 12 African American male collegians. Comparisons of these perceptions across family compositions and an extant model of family influence and college choice were also explored. The students in this study attended both public and private 4-year historically Black and predominantly White colleges situated throughout seven states in the Midwest and the South. A phenomenological qualitative research approach was employed to forward this study. Also, interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA) techniques were applied to data gleaned from face-to-face interviews. Results of the study revealed two overarching themes of family influence and college choice for African American males: (1) deliberate family involvement and (2) contextual family influences. Eight subthemes illuminate the overarching theme deliberate family involvement: (1) emphasizing hard work, (2) aiding with pre-college paperwork, (3) offering messages about value of college, (4) supporting extra-curricular activities, (5) encouraging positive decision-making, (6) cultural indoctrination, (7) providing affirming words and praise, and (8) regular accessibility. Four subthemes buttress the overarching theme contextual family influence: (1) family educational choices, (2) family participation, (3) family representation and reactions, and (4) family stress. Implications for practice and recommendations for future research are also presented.

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本研究旨在探討隨著臺灣的民主化進程，不同年代間的夫妻權力關係所受影響之因素與改變情形，尤其是社會情境（文化脈絡）方面的影響。擬採用家庭決策模式為指標，並根據資源論、交換論與與文化規範的論點，討論個人特質與其所握有的資源對家庭決策模式的影響。焦點包括臺灣的民主化進程會否導致夫妻間共同決定的比例增加？以及夫妻所擁有的資源對影響夫妻權力分配的影響程度，是否隨著臺灣的民主化進程而增加？ 研究者採用「華人家庭動態調查」資料庫中第一年計畫（RI-1999）與第五年計畫（RI-2003）兩筆資料當中有關「家庭決策與支出」的部分進行分析。研究結果發現不論何者皆是以夫妻共同決定的情況為主，隨著時間的變化並未有顯著的增加，甚至略為減少。另外，研究結果顯示隨著臺灣的民主化進程，夫妻所擁有的資源對影響夫妻權力分配的影響程度的確有所增加。根據研究的結果而知，隨著臺灣的民主化進程，教育的普及與兩性平權概念的提升，的確造成夫妻權力間的變化受到相對社經資源影響增加，反而使得共同決策的情形略減。此外，過去一些認為會影響夫妻權力關係的個人特質因素，像是族群的部分，所呈現的結果反而和過去的研究不一致。究竟民主化對於影響夫妻權力關係的其他因素將會帶來何種變化，可做為將來研究的方向。 / The purpose of this research is to understand the power relationship between husbands and wives, including the factors and the transition during 1999-2003 within the process of Taiwan’s democratization, especially the context of culture. Researcher adopts family decision-making as an important index. Base on the resources theory, the exchange theory and the theory of resources in culture context, the main questions of this research are: 1. Does the proportion of family decision-making change? 2. The situation that the more resources one has, the more power in making decision one has would increase. The results are as follows. The proportion of family decision-making does not change significantly, however, the situation that one has more resources would have more power in making decision does increase. Nevertheless, the research tells us that some personal characteristics like one’s ethnic group, do not have the same result as research in past. How will Taiwan’s democratization influence these factors, or change their nature in the process of decision-making? That could be a good research direction in the future.

本研究旨在探討不同年代夫妻權力關係之影響因素及改變情形。研究者採用家庭決策模式為指標，以「子女管教及教養」、「家用支出分配」、「購買高價家庭用品」作為重要的測量變項。根據資源論、交換論以及文化規範理論觀點，討論之焦點包括：1.夫妻資源是否影響夫妻權力關係之運作？2.兩性的性別角色態度是否影響夫妻權力關係之運作？並比較兩個年度之差異。 研究者利用「台灣地區社會變遷基本調查」第三期第二次家庭組（1996年）及第五期第二次（2006年）家庭組之研究問卷資料進行分析。研究結果發現： 1. 家庭決策模式之樣貌：三項家庭決策大多以「共同決定」為主要之模式。然在性別比例及兩個年度比例分配上仍有些微差異。 2. 資源差異對夫妻權力關係之影響：已婚兩性之資源差異對家庭決策有部份達到顯著。整體來說，擁有較高資源者，會有助於「決策權力」的增加。 3. 性別角色態度對夫妻權力關係之影響：分析檢定結果顯示性別角色態度對於家庭決策模式之作用獲得證實。性別角色態度較傳統者，家庭決策會傾向傳統父權之思維。反之，態度越現代者，家庭決策模式會傾向較平權之模式。 4. 1996年及2006年影響夫妻權力關係因素之轉變：夫妻資源之高低以及性別角色態度在兩個年度對家庭決策模式皆有重要的影響力。最大的差異在於2006年女性負責更多的子女管教及教養之決策權，特別反應在高等教育成程度者。在態度方面1996年已婚兩性之態度皆有其影響性，但2006年只有女性的態度對家庭決策模式有作用。 最後根據研究結論提出建議，研究者認為除了在鉅視層面持續耕耘兩性平權觀念推廣及宣導外，在職場上真正落實兩性工作平等法保障婦女就業實為重要。 / The purpose of this research is to understand the power relationship between husbands and wives, including the factors and the transition during 1996-2006. Researcher adopts family decision-making as an important index. “Children disciplining”, “family expenditure”, and “buying expensive house wares” are the measuring variables. Base on the Resources Theory, the Exchange Theory, and the Theory of Resources in Cultural Context, the main questions of this research are: 1. Do the resources between husbands and wives influence their power relationships? 2. Do the attitude of gender role effects the power relationships of husbands and wives? 3. Is there any transition from 1996 to 2006? The results are as follows.1.Most proportions in 3 items of family decision-making are the Common decision-making model. 2. The resources difference between married both sexes are significant to the family decision-making. The more resources one has, the more power in making decision one has. 3. The attitude of gender role effect the family decision-making. The sex role attitude is more traditional, the family decision-making will favor thought of the traditional patriarchy. Otherwise, the attitude is more modern, the family decision model will favor compares pattern of the equal rights. 4. Both the resources difference and the attitude of gender role are important factors in 1996 and 2006.Compair with 1996, the high level of education female have more power in “Children disciplining” decision-making, and female’s attitude of gender role are more important to family decision-making in 2006. According to the research conclusion, researcher puts forward the suggestions.

The emotional aspect of caregiving is extremely complex and caregivers face tremendous emotional challenges as they react to the reality of their loved one's increasing disability. When it comes to making the placement decision, caregivers have frequently reached a burnout point in making decisions.