Stability Rates of Same-Sex Couples: With and Without Children

Abstract

In contrast to earlier studies, several recent ones have claimed that stability rates among same-sex couples are similar to those of different-sex couples. This article reexamines these latest accounts and provides new evidence regarding stability rates using three large, nationally representative datasets from the United States and Canada. Confirming the earliest work, we find that same-sex couples are more likely to break up than different-sex couples. We find that the gap in stability is larger for couples with children, the very group for which concerns about stability are the most important.     

Love and Money: Reducing Stress and Improving Couple Happiness

A love and money curriculum was developed to guide couples through conversations about the role money plays in their relationships. Thirteen couples participated in the 5-week study. Physiological stress was measured during each of the five meetings. Couples’ satisfaction, attitudes, and behaviors were evaluated with pre-and post-surveys. Findings indicate that couples experienced a reduction in the stress finances put on their relationship and increased happiness with their financial situation, communication, and household responsibilities. Implications for more wide-spread application of the curriculum are provided as a way of talking about money with couples.     

Let's Have a Cup of Coffee! Coffee and Coping Communities at Work

Coffee breaks are the main target in this investigation as the paper draws upon a qualitative focus group among Danish public family law caseworkers employed in a newly merged workplace Coffee breaks were identified as the utmost important factor for social and personal well‐being within an emotional taxing occupation. Indeed, communities of coping were created through coffee break encounters. However, coping communities were deeply embedded in informal workgroup cultures, which made them difficult to enter for newcomers. Newcomers entered the communities of coping through office meetings with an informal tone and atmosphere of sharing a cake. Thus, coping communities and informal workgroup cultures were found to intersect in the sociality that formed in formal as well as spontaneous coffee break encounters.     

Couple Longevity in the Era of Same‐Sex Marriage in the United States

The author used a new longitudinal data set, the How Couples Meet and Stay Together surveys (N = 3,009), to generate the first nationally representative comparison of same‐sex couple stability and heterosexual couple stability in the United States. He measured the association between marriage (by several definitions of marriage) and couple longevity for same‐sex couples in the United States. Reports of same‐sex relationship instability in the past were due in part to the low rate of marriages among same‐sex couples. After controlling for marriage and marriage‐like commitments, the break‐up rate for same‐sex couples was comparable to (and not statistically distinguishable from) the break‐up rate for heterosexual couples. The results revealed that same‐sex couples who had a marriage‐like commitment had stable unions regardless of government recognition. A variety of predictors of relationship dissolution for heterosexual and for same‐sex couples are explored.     

A Holistic Approach to the Treatment of the Crisis of Infertility

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the importance of assessing the impact of infertility on couples/individuals and understanding the relevance of the impact in the context of psychological treatment. The assumption is that infertility can have a significant negative impact which can at least be minimized by therapeutic intervention. Three psychological-behavioral categories are posited as the result of several years work with infertile individuals/couples. Detailed case presentations of couples in each category are given so that the total impact of the crisis of infertility and the role of psychological intervention can best be understood.     

CHANGING BUSINESS MODELS IN INTERNATIONAL BANK FUNDING

This paper investigates the foreign funding mix of globally active banks. Using BIS international banking statistics for a panel of 12 advanced economies, we detect a structural break in international bank funding at the onset of the great financial crisis. In their postbreak business model, banks rely less on cross‐border liabilities and, instead, tap funds from outside their jurisdictions by making more active use of their subsidiaries and branches, as well as interoffice accounts within the same banking group. (JEL C32, F65, G21)     

Relationship Education and Therapy for Same‐Sex Couples

The gay and lesbian community suffers higher rates of discrimination, mental health problems, and relationship break‐up than their heterosexual counterparts. In this paper we analyse the challenges confronting same‐sex couples, and the implications for couple education and therapy with same‐sex couples. We describe some similarities in the challenges confronting heterosexual and same‐sex couples (e.g., negotiation of shared realistic relationship expectations, effective communication). These similarities suggest existing evidence‐based approaches to couple therapy and relationship education are likely to assist same sex couple relationships. We also describe distinctive challenges for same‐sex couples (e.g., homophobic discrimination, internalised homophobia, and low support from many families for same sex relationships). These distinctive challenges suggest some adaptation of existing approaches to couple education and therapy could enhance their relevance and effectiveness to same sex couples.     

Unmarried Coparenting in the Context of Poverty: Understanding the Relationship Between Stress,Family Resource Management,and Resilience

Due to rising rates of non-marital birth in the United States, unmarried families have been the subject of extensive research and the target of government funded interventions over the last 15 years. Despite a growing literature on this population, few studies have addressed how unmarried couples coparent in the context of poverty. In the present study we used in-depth interviews with paired mothers and fathers to explore resilience processes in unmarried coparenting. We found that unmarried couples aspired to be good coparents, but the stress of living in poverty and the challenges of parenting young children led some to experience family strain or crisis. Using family stress theory as a framework for organizing the findings, we concluded that family resource management distinguished couples that adapted successfully to the task of coparenting from those that struggled to do so. Implications for theory, future research, and practice are discussed.     

ONE COUPLE,THREE THERAPISTS: THERAPEUTIC OVERDOSE OR COLLUSION BREAKER?

The use of multiple therapists for one case is sometimes an unnecessary overdose of therapy. This paper discusses those couples in which each has reached a plateau in his/her individual therapy and they are referred for concurrent marital therapy to break the impasse. Projective identification is the major defense used by these couples. The author suggests a time-limited, issue-focused approach lasting 2–6 months. The more severe the pathology, the shorter the marital therapy should be.     

Constructing Couples’ Stories: Narrative Practice Insights from a Dyadic Dementia Intervention

Memory loss and dementia can be devastating for both caregivers and care recipients. Narrative therapeutic approaches offer promise, as well as challenges, for social interventions with couples where one partner has dementia. The Couples Life Story Approach is a recently-developed method by which practitioners work with such couples to help them narrate the story of their life together. This narrative approach is augmented by mementoes (e.g., photos, cards) that are collected by the couple during the intervention. Significant memories are elicited from both partners and developed into a Life Story Book. Drawing on data from this clinical research intervention with 20 older couples, we ask: What are some of the challenges of conducting narrative-based therapeutic interventions with older couples with memory loss? Clinical themes were identified utilizing a multiple case study approach during weekly team meetings. Six of the most prominent themes are presented here. Specifically, how to: (1) construct a narrative from disparate stories, (2) tell a mutual story, (3) tell the story of a couple that has been in a shorter relationship, (4) incorporate others in the story, (5) include difficult life moments, and, (6) end the story. Within each theme, we utilize case examples to illuminate relevant issues and describe strategies that were developed to resolve these clinical challenges. Implications for practitioners and clinical researchers who are engaged in dyadic interventions are discussed.     

Married women’s added worker effect during the 2008 economic crisis—The case of Turkey

This paper analyzes the labor supply response of married women as a result of their husbands’ job losses (‘added worker effect’). The study uses panel data from Turkey to test the presence of an added worker effect during the global economic crisis of 2008. Identification is achieved by an instrumental variable approach. In particular, an exogenous variation in the output of male-dominated sectors induced by the crisis is used as an instrument for the husbands’ unemployment. Results show that the probability of a woman participating in the labor force increases by 15–28% in response to her husband’s unemployment. However, the effect is not contemporaneous; rather, it appears with a lag of one quarter and only operates for two quarters. The effect is mainly driven by financially-constrained (less-educated and young) couples, which suggests the prevalence of an income effect in spousal labor supply decisions.     

Back to the capitalist future: Fantasy and the paradox of crisis

This paper draws on a Lacanian perspective to better understand how crisis can paradoxically produce fantasies of ideological renewal. Using the 2008 economic meltdown as an example, it argues that these events are articulated as a part of a crisis narrative that links past ideals with future stability and progress. At the level of subjectivity, these fantasies reflect the psychological trauma individuals feel in the face of encountering the incoherent and fragmentary ‘Real’ of their identity during periods of greater social and economic upheaval. In the context of the current crisis, political leaders attempted to reinforce capitalist ideologies through promoting a fantasy of recovery that connected future prosperity with values of financialization and a global ‘free market’, as is borne out in their public statements following this event. Critically, this points to the importance of ‘traversing’ these fantasies in order to break free from desires for renewal in favour of those emphasizing transformation.     

Beyond polyphony: Open Dialogue in a Women’s Shelter in Australia as a possibility for supporting violence‐informed practice

Open Dialogue is a family/social network‐centered psychotherapeutic approach to responding to people in crisis and distress. In 2017, Open Dialogue network meetings were implemented in an Australian inner‐city shelter for disadvantaged women. The aim of this study was to explore the experience of participating in these meetings from the perspective of service users and Open Dialogue practitioners. Qualitative interviews were completed with thirteen participants (six service users and seven practitioners) and analyzed thematically. The findings suggested that dialogical processes created safety by attending to multiple voices in nonviolent ways that reduced perceived hierarchies. Notions of expertise were renegotiated, which allowed the women to feel heard in significant ways that were different from their previous experiences with other social and healthcare services. Open Dialogue is an approach that can meaningfully attend to some of the power relations within which women live and within which social and health care services are provided.     

Treating intimate partner violence within intact couple relationships: outcomes of multi-couple versus individual couple therapy

An experimental design was used to determine outcomes of a domestic violence-focused treatment program for couples that choose to stay together after mild-to-moderate violence has occurred. Forty-two couples were randomly assigned to either individual couple or multi-couple group treatment. Nine couples served as the comparison group. Male violence recidivism rates 6 months after treatment were significantly lower for the multi-couple group (25%) than for the comparison group (66%). In contrast, men in the individual couple condition were not significantly less likely to recidivate (43%) than those in the comparison group. In addition, marital satisfaction increased significantly, and both marital aggression and acceptance of wife battering decreased significantly among individuals who participated in multi-couple group therapy, but not among those who participated in individual couple therapy or the comparison group.     

Training in Human Relations Skills as a Preferred Mode of Treatment for Married Couples*

While effective communication is recognized as important to marital adjustment, few therapeutic alternatives specifically attempt to teach improved communication skills in a systematic manner. In this study, five couples experiencing marital difficulties participated in a traditional therapy group with emphasis upon cathartic release and problem solving. A similar group of five couples participated in a training group consisting of a systematic didactic and experiential approach emphasizing the ability to discriminate and communicate helpfully. The results of outcome measures assessing gain in interpersonal skills and overall functioning indicate significant improvement in the training as compared to the traditional group.     

Male Couples and Their Relationship Styles

This article presents a classification system for understanding male couples in terms of how they bond and maintain a relationship. The various roles sex plays in the development and maintenance of a relationship are also examined, as is the important influence of AIDS. In order to be helpful to male couples, social workers need to be familiar with the diversity of relationship patterns in this group.     

The effectiveness of short-term group therapy upon the pathological gambler and wife

The study was undertaken with the general hypothesis that short term conjoint group therapy with pathological gamblers and their wives would help them become less defensive. This should enable the working through process, and hence contribute to increased marital compatibility and communications. Ten volunteer couples were subjects in the experimental condition. The same number of subjects participated as controls. They were all active members of Gamblers Anonymous and Gam-Anon. The treatment modality used was based upon the G.A. Twelve-Step Recovery Program. All subjects were tested with repeated measures on the Beck Depression Inventory, the FIRO-MATE, and the Mooney Problem Check Lists. No significant results were obtained vis-a-vis the general hypothesis. Data analysis revealed that treatment couples showed higher awareness and concerns to the conflicts in neurotic relationships, whereas, the control wives continued to blame gambling as the essential problem rather than the symptom of chaotic, but enduring marriages (overall mean of 17.4 years married). Also, resistance to depression remained intact in the experimental condition. Following the conclusion of the experiment, all but one of the original treatment couples elected to continue the group process and the program has become an addendum to the regular G.A. meetings. The inference was that some level of consciousness was affected in the treatment subjects and further research in longer-term processes was indicated.     

The Bloom Is on the Rose

Summary

This paper argues for the value of an adult developmental perspective in work with lesbian couples. Focusing on midlife, case examples illustrate issues and situations that create strength and satisfaction, as well as those that create stress and disappointment. Key themes include expansiveness and generativity, differentiation, awareness of past and future, reorganizing priorities, finitude, caregiving stress, infidelity, midlife crisis, self-growth, and the different impact of homophobia on three cohorts of midlife lesbians. Implications for therapeutic intervention are described, with particular emphasis on case formulation and treatment planning that explicitly provides couples with an understanding of the sociohistorical and adult developmental context in which their difficulties arise.