Gendered perceptions of fairness in housework and shared expenses: Implications for relationship satisfaction and sex frequency

Differences in social support, emotion invalidation, psychological needs, cognitive emotion regulation in maritally adjusted and maladjusted women in Pakistan: A matched pairs design

The present study aimed to find out differences of social support, perceived emotion invalidation, psychological needs, and use of adaptive and maladaptive cognitive emotion regulation strategies in maritally adjusted and maladjusted after controlling for age, education, employment status, and depressive symptomatology. The cross-sectional study uses a matched pairs design. The sample was divided into two groups; maritally adjusted and maladjusted women (n = 40 pairs) on basis of scores obtained on revised-dyadic adjustment scale. Forty maritally adjusted women were matched with 40 maritally maladjusted women according to age, education, and employment status. Social support questionnaire, perceived invalidation of emotion scale, basic psychological need satisfaction frustration scale, cognitive emotion regulation questionnaire, and center for epidemiologic studies depression scale were administered. One-way ANCOVA revealed that maritally maladjusted women had lower level of social support [mean difference; -5.65(-9.97, -1.33), p < 0.05, partial η2 = 0.08] and more emotional invalidation [mean difference; 15.36(13.08, 17.65), p < 0.001, partial η2 = 0.71] compared to maritally adjusted women after controlling for the effect of depressive symptomatology. Maritally maladjusted women had more need frustration [mean difference; 10.75(7.59, 13.92), p < 0.001, partial η2 = 0.38] compared to maritally adjusted women. However, maritally adjusted women had more need satisfaction [mean difference; 13.36(9.67, 17.05), p < 0.001, partial η2 = 0.41] compared to maritally maladjusted women. Maritally adjusted women used more adaptive CER strategies (acceptance, refocus on planning and putting into perspective) [mean difference; 4.66(2.36, 6.95), p < 0.001, partial η2 = 0.18] compared to maritally maladjusted women whereas, maritally maladjusted women used more maladaptive strategies (self-blame, catastrophizing and blaming others) [mean difference; 4.66(2.77, 6.54), p < 0.001, partial η2 = 0.25] compared to maritally adjusted women. Maladjusted women had less social support and more emotional invalidation of emotions and psychological needs frustration. They used more maladaptive strategies to manage their negative emotions in comparison to maritally adjusted women. Identification of these cognitive emotion regulation strategies will help clinicians and counselors to devise psychological intervention targeting the use of adaptive strategies to minimize the negative mental health consequences.

The Co-Parenting Across Family Structures Scale: Replication for Mandarin parents

Co-parenting, the undertaking of parents working together to raise their children, is well documented as an important consideration of children's adjustment in Western countries, but we know less about the role of co-parenting in other cultures. In China, for example, co-parenting has only recently emerged in the social science literature. This study aimed to examine the cultural sensitivity of the CoPAFS instrument among Chinese Mandarin-speaking parents. CoPAFS is a 27-item survey designed to assess co-parenting across married and unmarried family structures originally developed in English. Data were collected from 729 Chinese-speaking and 348 English-speaking respondents. Factor analyses and confirmatory factor analyses indicated that the overall model fit for the translated co-parenting measure was acceptable in Mandarin. However, the five CoPAFS subscales (trust, respect, communication, acrimony, and value) differed across comparison groups, with communication notable for its lack of endorsement among Chinese couples. Implications of measuring co-parenting within Chinese families are offered.

Fairer Sex: The Role of Relationship Equity in Female Sexual Desire

Previous investigations into Female Sexual Desire (FSD) have been focused on women's biological, cognitive, and emotional processes, despite evidence that FSD is also responsive to relational contexts. Past research consistently demonstrates a general association between relationship satisfaction and FSD. There remains, however, a need to expound this connection. In response, this study explored the role of relationship equity in relationship satisfaction and FSD. For this cross-sectional study, 299 Australian women aged 18 to 39 years responded to an online questionnaire measuring relationship factors and dimensions of sexual desire. Two mediation models were tested to examine how relationship equity was associated with solitary and dyadic sexual desire, via a connection with relationship satisfaction. As expected, equality in relationships predicted relationship satisfaction, which, subsequently, was related to higher levels of dyadic sexual desire. No significant mediation was found for solitary desire, indicating that relationship factors may not play a critical role in this domain. This result also demonstrates a distinct divergence between the two domains of desire that requires further examination. These results solidify the notion of FSD as a multifaceted construct and present meaningful implications for theory, research, and clinical practice.

Comparing Foodie Calls in Poland, the United Kingdom, and the United States: A Registered Replication Report

Collisson et al. (2020) found Dark Triad traits and gender role beliefs predicted "foodie calls," a phenomenon where people go on a date with others, to whom they are not attracted, for a free meal. Because gender roles and dating norms differ across cultures, we conducted a registered replication across different cultures by surveying 1838 heterosexual women from Poland, the United Kingdom (UK), and the United States (US). Relying on the structural equation modeling, as conducted in the original study, our findings revealed gender role beliefs best predicted foodie calls and their perceived acceptability, whereas the Dark Triad's general factor was nonsignificant. Analyses at the country level yielded mixed results. The original findings were replicated in the UK and Poland, but not in the US, where only narcissism predicted foodie calls. In the US, gender role beliefs predicted foodie call acceptability, but the Dark Triad general factor did not. Potential reasons for why traditional gender roles, but not the Dark Triad, predicted foodie calls in the US are discussed.

Debunking Lesbian Bed Death: Using Coarsened Exact Matching to Compare Sexual Practices and Satisfaction of Lesbian and Heterosexual Women

The current study examined the prevalence and correlates of over 50 sexual practices in a national survey of heterosexual and lesbian women in relationships. Coarsened exact matching was used to create comparable samples of heterosexual (n = 2510) and lesbian (n = 283) women on six demographic factors, including relationship length. Heterosexual and lesbian women were equally likely to be sexually satisfied (66% heterosexual women vs. 68% lesbian women). Compared to heterosexuals, lesbians were more likely to report having sex 0-1 times per month (11% vs. 23%) and were less likely to report having sex greater than once per month (89% vs. 77%). Among women who had been in relationships for longer than 5 years, heterosexual women were less likely than lesbian women to report having sex 0-1 times per month (15%; 42%). This steeper drop in sexual frequency among lesbian women than heterosexual women has pejoratively been labeled lesbian bed death. Rather than accept the label "lesbian bed death" as characterizing these sexual relationships, we turn our attention to what we call lesbian bed intimacies: the myriad ways that lesbian women incorporate behaviors promoting emotional connection, romance, and mood setting, as well as relying on a wide variety of specific sexual acts (e.g., use of sex toys) and sexual communication. Compared to heterosexual women, lesbian women were more likely to usually to always receive oral sex during sex in the past month (28%; 47%) and to use sex toys in the past year (40%; 62%). In their last sexual encounter, lesbian women were more likely to say "I love you" (67%; 80%), have sex longer than 30 min (48%; 72%), and engage in gentle kissing (80%; 92%). These intimacies likely help explain why sexual satisfaction was similar in these groups despite notable differences in sexual frequency.

Sexual Practices and Satisfaction among Gay and Heterosexual Men in Romantic Relationships: A Comparison Using Coarsened Exact Matching in a U.S. National Sample

Gay men are underrepresented in research on sexual satisfaction. We examined sexual satisfaction and over 50 sexual practices in an online U.S. national survey of men in relationships. Coarsened exact matching created comparable samples of heterosexual (n = 3527) and gay (n = 452) men on six demographic factors, including relationship length. Results identified many similarities between the groups, including sexual frequency, orgasm frequency, duration of sex, and sexual satisfaction. The majority of heterosexual and gay men expressed physical or emotional affection during their last sexual encounter, reporting that they or their partner said "I love you" (66%; 57%) and engaged in deep kissing (69%; 75%) or gentle kissing (82%; 72%). Heterosexual men were less likely than gay men to usually-always receive (27%; 61%) or give (37%; 68%) oral sex when intimate in the past month; were less likely to view pornography with their partner (35%; 61%); but were more likely to give their partner massages in the past year to improve their sex lives (71%; 58%). Number of sexual communication behaviors was a strong predictor of sexual satisfaction, particularly for gay men (β =.36). These findings enhance our understanding of heterosexual and gay men's sexual lives.

Extended gender inequality? Intergenerational coresidence and division of household labor

This study investigates the effect of coresidence with the husband's or the wife's parents on division of household labor between the couple in China. We further examine how life course, education, hukou, and the gender composition of coresiding parents moderate the relationship between intergenerational coresidence and division of household labor. Previous research on housework division has looked at nuclear families. Little is known about the effect of intergenerational coresidence on housework division. Despite rapid modernization, intergenerational coresidence remains prevalent in China as families try to adapt to the changing social and economic conditions. While patrilocal coresidence dominates in both rural and urban China, matrilocal coresidence is increasingly common in urban China. Based on panel data from the 2010, 2014, 2016, and 2018 waves of the China Family Panel Studies, fixed effects models are used to account for both observed and unobserved individual-specific confounders. Both patrilocal and matrilocal coresidence seem to widen the within-couple gender gap in housework time among urban hukou holders. Among rural hukou holders, though patrilocal coresidence is associated with reduced housework time for the wife and the couple as a whole, neither patrilocal nor matrilocal coresidence significantly influences how much time the husband spent on housework. Coresidence with the husband's or the wife's parents may exacerbate gender inequality in housework division.