• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.25-42
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• 2006

The purpose of this study was to investigate how the married middle-aged married men and women describe their own gender-role attitude, mid-life crisis and psychological adjustment, including search components as both middle-aged men and women's income, and education with occupation. Psychological adjustment was composed of mid-life crisis, depression, and perceived happiness, These data were collected from 397 married, middle aged men and women from 40 years to 59 years-old by using self-administered questionnaire method, The summarized results of the study are as follows: First of all, the middle-aged men's gender-role attitudes were more traditional gender-role attitudes 'than of women's. Second, in general characteristic, the men were different according to education, However, the women's gender-role attitudes were different according to ages, a period of marriage, education, income, and occupation. Third, in psychological adjustment, the men had significant differences in income. And, the women had significant differences in ages, a period of marriage, education, income, and occupation. Finally, the men and women's gender-role attitudes were positively correlated with mid-life crisis and depression, and were negatively correlated with happiness. And, the women's gender-role attitudes were positively correlated with psychological adjustment.

• Korean Journal of Culture and Social Issue
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.81-101
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• 2010

The purposes of this study were: (a) to examine the relationship between parental/occupational role reconstruction and psychological well-being in middle and old age, (b) to investigate the psychological factors to affect parental/occupational roles reconstruction. The role reconstruction was measured as the extent to obsess with parental and occupational role in transition. Mail survey was conducted on 378 Japanese married men and women in ages between 50 and 69. As results, the hypothetical pathway was identified in women as follows. The obsession with parental and occupational roles raised parental and occupational role loss anxiety. And both of role loss anxiety lower psychological well-being. For men, obsessed with the occupational role was significantly influenced by autonomy, gender role attitude, social support network. For women, gender role attitude significantly influenced on occupational and parental role obsession, and social support networks had significant impact on parental role obsession. Results of this study were discussed in terms of the importance of role reconstruction in middle and old age, gender difference in role reconstruction according to gender role socialization.

• Journal of Family Relations
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.77-98
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• 2016

Objectives: The aim of this study was to explore perceived meanings of dating and marriage among well-educated Korean couples who were in optimal marriageable ages. Particularly, an emphasis was placed on finding out where the traditional gender norms and post-modern contexts intersect on the couples' course of dating and marriage. Method: We undertook a qualitative analysis of 8 couples (age: 26-34) dating. Participants were limited to university graduates of upper-middle rank universities in Seoul, South Korea. The rationale for choosing such sample was based on the idea that characteristics of class is inherent in the act of dating and marriage, and that such characteristics lead to different contextual experiences in dating and marriage. This study was based on interviews conducted over a three-month time span. The interviews were first transcribed into research text and then subjects and key categories were drawn from the transcripts for analysis. Results: Participants sought meanings of joy, learning, and self-improvement in dating, and they were free from traditional gender norms in their romantic relationships. They viewed marriage as having a permanent companionship with their partner, becoming independent from their parents, and/or a social norm to be followed. Participants reported mixed perceptions about marriage in such fashion that they described their parents' relationship in terms of a gendered leader-supporter relationship, while viewing their own relationship as being genderless partners. In transition to parenthood, however, they regressed to traditional gender norms dichotomized as women being a homemaker and men being a breadwinner. In sum, participants displayed expectations that were inconsistent with regard to dating and marriage over the study period. That is, during the course of dating and early marriage, they did not hold separated gender norms; however, when transitioning from being a newly married couple to giving their first childbirth, expectations shifted to traditional gender norms and values. Conclusion: This suggests that it is not marriage, but the experience of childbirth and motherhood, which strengthen traditional gendered norms, engendering regeneration of the gender norms in families. The results indicate that there is a need to promote co-parenting behavior among the newly-married couples and to educate gender equality about parent roles or for parents in South Korea so that they can overcome traditional gendered norms in family.