NOTES LECTURE 17 11/6/07 Percentage of US adults married by the age of 35 In 1960 87% of Women 88% of Men In 1999 71% of Women 69% of Men Courtship stages give romantic partners ways to escape before the consequences become too serious Courtship stages Stage 1: Couples interact as individual members of a larger group Stage 2: Interested part confides in a trusted group member who explores the possibility of reciprocal interest Stage 3: An approach is made Stage 4: Couple breaks off from the group and goes into seclusion A). Desire for complete disclosure B). Recreate personal histories Stage 5: The two rejoin the group as a couple Stage 6: Family members are informed of the relationship Stage 7: Pressure from families leads to a proposal of engagement Stage 8: Engagement and planning for wedding creates tremendous stress on the couple
Stage 9: Wedding Sexual relations increase partners' power over each other. The resulting stress can accelerate the courtship process, either by ending it early or moving it toward stage 9 Relationships are more likely to succeed if sexual relations are postponed until later stages of the courtship process Does cohabitation, living together before marriage, increase the likelihood divorce? of Sociological research has consistently shown that individuals who cohabit before marriage are more likely to divorce. Why? Kimberly Schlosser, a student in this class, showed that: When individuals cohabit only with the person the later marry, they are slightly LESS likely to divorce than are the individuals who never cohabit. When individuals cohabit with someone other than the person they later marry, they are substantially MORE likely to divorce than are individuals who never cohabit. Epidemiology: Applies social research to the medical science, the study of the incidence, distribution and control of disease in a population Alfred Kinsey: First scientific study of sexual practices in the U.S. during the 1940's at the University of Indiana Alfred Kinsey, (1948) Sexual Behavior in the Human Male, (1953) Sexual Behavior in the Human Female.
Very large samples can be just as biased as small ones if randomization procedures are neglected. Edward O. Laumann et al. (1994) The Social Organization of Sexuality. U. of Chicago, National Health and Social Life Survey completed 1992: 3400 respondents, strict random sampling procedures, very high completion rate, 80%, suggests high quality results.