DISTINGUISHED SCHOLAR ARTICLE Rethinking women's sexual orientation: An interdisciplinary,relationship‐focused approach

What leads some women to form romantic and sexual relationships with men, and other women to form intimate relationships with women? This article presents a new conceptual paradigm for understanding women's sexual orientation that is emerging from research in such diverse fields as social psychology, sex research, evolutionary psychology, attachment theory, and neuroscience. This approach acknowledges the potential plasticity of women's sexuality and the emphasis that women place on close relationships as a context for sexuality. Research also raises the possibility that for women the biological determinants of sexual desire, attraction, and attachment are not inherently linked to a partner's gender. This article begins with a brief survey of research on women's same‐sex romantic and sexual relationships not only in the United States today but also in other cultures and historical periods. These and other findings are used to critique prevailing conceptual models of women's sexual orientation. Finally, key elements in an alternative paradigm are described.     

The grandparent–grandchild relationship in childhood and adulthood: A matter of continuation?

This study examined whether grandparents perceive adult grandchildren as frequent and important contacts by analyzing network membership. It additionally examined whether this network membership is related to relationship intensity during childhood. Network membership was assessed in 1992 (397 grandparents, 1,594 adult grandchildren) and at the 2005–2006 follow‐up (155 grandparents, 429 adult grandchildren) from the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam. Relationship intensity during childhood was assessed in 1992. One out of 4 grandparents identified at least 1 adult grandchild in their personal network. Adult grandchildren who had an intense relationship with their grandparents during childhood were more often in grandparents' network than others. An intense relationship during childhood promotes continuation of the relationship into adulthood and might contribute to grandparent's support potential.     

The effect of social influence on cognitive development and school performance

Three months before school entrance a sample of 29 children and their mothers was tested for degree of decentred child educability and degree of decentred maternal teaching. Mother and child were tested in two different situations, thus preventing interdependency between the measures of mother and child. Four months after school entrance, teacher judgements of school performance were obtained. A strong correspondence between degree of decentred child educability and degree of decentred maternal teaching was demonstrated. Degree of decentred maternal teaching and degree of decentred child educability were found to be good predictors of school performance, accounting for respectively 45 and 33% of the variance in school performance. In contrast a test of school readiness only accounted for 2% of the variance. A test of intelligence given after the teacher judgement accounted for 31% of the variance. The fact that the mother seems to be a better predictor of her child's school performance than the child himself, supports the assumption that parents, particularly mothers, are important mediators between the child and the outer world.     

The actor–partner interdependence model for categorical dyadic data: A user‐friendly guide to GEE

The actor–partner interdependence model (APIM) has been widely used for the analysis of pairs of individuals who interact with each other. The goal of this article is to detail in a nontechnical way how the APIM for binary or count outcomes can be implemented and how actor and partner effects can be estimated using generalized estimating equations (GEE) methodology. Both SPSS‐ and SAS‐syntax needed to estimate the model and the interpretation of the output are illustrated using data from a study exploring the effect of satisfaction with the relationship before the breakup on unwanted pursuit behavior after the breakup in formerly married partners. The use of this GEE method will allow researchers to test a wide array of research hypotheses.     

The Use of Multiple Approaches to Conflict

An exploratory study is conducted that examines individuals’patterns of change in behavioral approach for a single conflict. The data were written accounts of a recent conflict in the workplace. Sequences of three approaches were analyzed using Markov probabilities. At each step in the sequence, approaches were coded high or low on three orthogonal dimensions: attention to own-view, attention to other-view, and relational disruptiveness. At the first step in the sequence, behavioral approaches tended to change to higher levels of attention to own-view, to lower levels of attention to other-view, and to lower levels of relational disruption. At the next step, behavioral approaches tended to change as follows: from high-to-low or low-to-high own-view, to low other-view, and to relational no disruption. The behavioral approach at the end of the conflict seems to differentiate single approach users from those who use multiple approaches, but only for the own-view dimension. Explanations for these findings are offered, and implications for future research—including the pursuit of Markov models of the process—are addressed.     

Role of clarity of other's feelings for dyadic coping

Dyadic coping has repeatedly been associated with positive outcomes in intimate relationships. However, less is known about the prospective predictors of dyadic coping. This study investigates clarity of other's feelings (CoF) as a potential predictor of supportive dyadic coping in a longitudinal study. In a sample of 368 couples, self‐reported CoF and supportive dyadic coping perceived by the partner were assessed annually over 3 years. Results revealed that interpersonal differences in men and women's CoF are positively associated with interpersonal differences in supportive dyadic coping. Moreover, interpersonal differences in men's CoF predicted long‐term intrapersonal changes in supportive dyadic coping of both partners. Couple intervention programs might strengthen couple's dyadic coping skills by targeting men's understanding of their partner's feelings.