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Two generations of college-educated women
This study explored the experiences of women in the postparental phase of the life cycle, with a view toward understanding how factors such as education, work, family relationships, and self-concept contribute to adaptation and coping. In the first wave (1957) of this longitudinal study, extensive interviews were conducted with 25 women, aged 47 to 69. Respondents were recruited from alumnae, civic, and political groups in the suburban New York City area. They all met the following criteria: had at least a bachelor's degree; lived in a family with mother and father present; never worked full-time permanently while raising children; and had no children living at home for at least one year prior to the interview. The interview included a variety of demographic and open-ended questions which probed participants' responses to and means of coping with departure of children from the home,...
