This study examines the hypothesis that the effect children have on their parents' marriages is due to stress in the parental role. A multivariate model was specified to assess the relationship between fathers' and mothers' parenting stress and their psychological well-being and perception of marital quality. In addition, the effects of 6 other variables were assessed: 2 competing roles (mother's employment and household division of labor), 2 children-related variables (number and age composition), marital duration, and economic distress. Data were collected from both the husband and the wife in 287 intact couples who had children living at home. Using structural equation modeling, data from both parents were analyzed jointly to assess the mutual effect of the spouses on one another. The findings indicated that, for both fathers and mothers, parenting stress was affected by the number of children and economic distress, but not by other roles (wife's employment and household division of labor). For both spouses, psychological well-being and perceived marital quality were affected negatively by parenting stress. Significant association was found between husbands' and wives' parenting stress, as well as a mutual effect of their perceived marital quality on each other. Some theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

O s relacionamentos íntimos são aspecto central da vida adulta e a qualidade dos mesmos tem implicações não só na saúde mental, mas também na saúde física e vida profissional de homens e mulheres. Em vista disso, ao longo do século XX, os pesquisadores demonstraram interesse crescente em compreender a vida amorosa e conjugal, bem como avaliar a qualidade desses relacionamentos. As Satisfação conjugal em casamentos de longa duração: uma construção possível AbstractMarital satisfaction in long lasting marriages: a feasible construction. Marital relationship is related with couple's health and quality of life, especially during the adulthood and the aging years. However, the fact that a marriage is long lasting, does not mean it is necessarily satisfactory to the partners. This paper aims to identify the processes and variables associated to satisfaction in long lasting marriages (those longer than 20 years). Thirty eight couples from São Paulo, Brazil, answered a set of questionnaires used previously in multicultural studies carried out in Sweden, USA, Germany, Canada, Netherlands, South Africa, Israel and Chile. In about half of these couples, at least one consort was found satisfied. Comparing satisfied and unsatisfied couples, it became clear that higher levels of satisfaction are found among couples who have adequate strategies for problem solving, proximity, cohesion, good communication skills; who are religiously active and satisfied with their economical status.

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The study focuses on adult grandchildren’s perception of their role towards their grandparents according to the perspectives of both generations: the grandchildren and the grandparents. This study proposes a definition of the role of the adult grandchild, including the expectations and obligations deriving from the role. The main theories that provide the conceptual framework for this study are Symbolic Interaction Theory, Exchange Theory and the Intergenerational Solidarity Model. The sample included 216 pairs of adult grandchildren (average age: 24.9) and their grandparents (average age: 78.3), Jewish residents in Israel, who responded to closed questionnaires. The main findings of the research demonstrate that role perception of the adult grandchild is shaped by means of intergenerational transfer and by internalizing norms and behavior patterns of parents. As expected, it was found that perception of the grandchild’s role is more positive among grandchildren who experienced their grandparents as caregivers in their childhood than among grandchildren that did not have the experience of being cared for by grandparents. Grandchildren definitely possess a perception of filial obligation and responsibility toward grandparents and in fact they express more positive opinions than the grandparent regarding this responsibility. Regarding the practical implications of these results for the clinical field of therapy with aging family, the conclusion that adult grandchildren are an integral part of the grandparents’ total support network can contribute to the development of comprehensive psycho-social evaluations, as well as to the development of family treatment programs that involve the third generation.

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