Chapter 9-10.ppt

1、Chapter 5:,Partnering: dating, coupling and mate selection,Mate Selection: Individual Free choice?,Point: Every society channel, regulate, control mate selection process. Social Structural Factors affect mate selection: for example: age, social class, religion, education, race/ethnicity. assortive m

2、ating = mates are matched on specific structural dimensions. Pool of eligibles: people defined as acceptable partners.,Why human societies control partner selection?,(reproductive system ?) The required dating and marriage norm: exogamy, heterogamy, for maintaining the reproductive system However, p

3、opular and more practiced norms: endogamy, homogamy, based on social, economic and political factors. arranged marriage vs “free choice marriage”, display the same pattern based on structural factors.,The Marriage Market and the Pool of Eligibles.,Meeting prospective mates, choosing partners, develo

4、ping a dating relationship, and falling in love are not random activities but are all predictable and are structured by a number of social and demographic factors. i.Marriage Market: A process by which we trade certain resources for the best offer we can get. In some countries a dowry is involved. W

5、omen are at a disadvantage in the mate-selection market. ii.Pool of Eligibles: Consists of people of the same race, class, and educational level as ourselves. a.Homogamy: The tendency to meet and marry someone very similar to ourselves. b.Exogamy: Marriage outside a particular group. c.Endogamy: Mar

6、riage within a particular,Why human societies control partner selection?,Marriage is the mean of providing for the continuity and stability of the existing family in traditional societies: group identities, economic factors such as dowry or dower, social rank, reputation, or lineage. (assortive mati

7、ng, not by chance, but choose based on social factors) Traditional: Arranged - non-traditional: free choice Varieties? (for example: arranged but veto power, match-making, allow for courtship and dating),Which produces stable marriages?,Arranged marriage: more stable, romantic love emerge in marriag

8、es Self esteem and dignity Love as a base of marriage not considered a must in many societies,Social script: a set of procedural norms and expectations that guide the behaviors of actors in the mating selection process.,For example: in the 19th century, social categories clearly defined for dating a

9、nd courtship today: lack social scripts: more flexible, individual and ambiguous: varieties of dating and match-making (hook-up, hanging-out) Cultural variation: courtship and dating in the west, match mates by shamans according to astrological signs, contractual arrangements by families free-choice

10、 based on criteria ranging from love, physical attractiveness and economic consideration. mating selection can start at infancy, childhood and early adulthood and elderly years. goal: marriage or recreation, status grading and achievement, and anticipatory socialization,SOCIAL STRUCTURAL FACTORS AND

11、 MATE SELECTION,AGE: differ across societies. In most industrialized countries, marriage age older, increase in the median age at marriage. Why? Age Homogamy: (operationalized as plus or minus 4 years) Difference between male and female is smaller. 6/7 male same or older Heterogamous marriages chara

12、cterized by lower social economic status of the husbands. Why? Males older than females: sex ratio, men mature later than women, cultural factors and gender inequality. marriage squeeze: imbalanced sex ratio Effect on individual and marital life?,Social Class: Mesalliance: Hypergamy vs hypogamy,Mati

13、ng gradient: men meaary women who are slightly lower down the social class continuum. (Results in lower marriage rate for women at the top of social hierarchy and men at the bottom of social statuses. age hypergamy vs educational status hypogamy.,Residential propinquity:,Why? One explanation for res

14、idential propinquity has been the Norm segregation theory that suggests people of similar expectations, values, and social categories reside in homogeneous clusters.,Interfaith marriages,High rate of endogamy Marriage stability? Effect on childrens religiosity?,Race/Ethnicity intermarriages,When did

15、 mixed marriages start? from prehistorical time. The most inflexible Increased? discrepancy between verbal approval and actual occurrence? Increased trends Male/female differences? Group size? Effect on marital life and children?,The Process,Cultural variation The U.S.: male-female game: different r

16、ules and goals for male and female Dating: family control vs individual control: nonegalitarian mode The principle of least interest: the party who is less interested in continuing the dating relationship is in a position to dominate and possibly exploit the other party. Engagement wedding expenses

17、Marriage? Neolocal , patrilocal , matrilocal,Social structural factors and dating:,Point: dating experiences emerge from the social, political and economic structure of a society. Gender: goal: sex vs commitment and marriage. Race: Dating, mate selection, and marriage are probably most endogamous an

18、d homogamous in terms of race African Americans: low sex-ratio, and marriage gradient. Class: Americans tend to mate with people from their own socioeconomic class religion: Religious homogamy limits choices and sexual orientation,Mate-selection in the United States,The U.S.: male-female “game”: set

19、 of rules, strategies, and goals for male and female Early history: only study heterosexual pairing: courtship is under family control and community supervision: “calling” - women in control Change: to getting together: men in control, women in weaker position. -dating: middle class, college student

20、s for self control, - a cultural pattern: incorporate values of the larger society: e.g. traditional gender roles, double standard, male initiate,Changes:,today, gender equality, individual control, sex separated from marriage, - and from love - hook up- cohabitation Dating as recreation and enterta

21、inment, changed with marriage pattern. Traditional dating is becoming more infrequent. Hooking up, physical contact or intercourse without commitment, is becoming more common. Hanging out in a group where individuals do not make their interests in each other explicit is also becoming the norm.,Chang

22、es:,New forms of partner connections, such as Internet chat rooms or personals ads are emerging. Dating scripts still tend to be fairly traditional, with men exerting greater control.,Dating of later-life adult,Demographic change: aging population higher life expectancy imbalance in sex ratio Issues

23、: conflict over independence and companionship, gender role conflict.,MEETING PARTNERS: WHERE AND HOW,A.School, Church, and Work. B.Singles Bars and Gay Bars. Are rejected by many people as nothing but “meat markets.” C.Self-Advertising: Personal Ads. D.Dating Clubs and Dating Services. E.Computer D

24、ating and the Internet. Clients complete a comprehensive questionnaire and the information is fed into a computer that matches it with other clients who have similar profiles. F.Dating in Cyberspace. Point: Dating scripts still tend to be fairly traditional, with men exerting greater control.,VIOLEN

25、CE IN DATING AND INTIMATE RELATIONSHIPS,A.Physical Abuse. one in three teenage relationships are abusive. Most victims are females B.Date and Acquaintance Rape. Although most rapes are date or acquaintance rapes It is estimated that one in four college women have either been raped or suffered attemp

26、ted rape at least once since age 14.,From Single to Married,The process is youth-centered and competitive. It occurs in a series of stages with differing commitment levels. The rules, goals, and strategies of the “game” are different for males and females. Communication often takes the form of nonve

27、rbal cues, signs, gestures and other symbolic movements.,Engagement,Engagement is the final transition in the process from single to married. It is a ritual that: Implies dating exclusiveness; Reinforces the importance of the couple relationship; and Involves a financial and symbolic commitment.,Ind

28、ividualistic Explanations of Partner Selection,Instinctive and biological theories are rooted in evolutionary instinct, genetic similarity, and unconscious needs and drives.,Explanation of partner selection,Individual Explanation: instinctive/biological Parental image theory: oedipus complex and Ele

29、ctra complex Complementary needs: when marry for love, needs are complementary (empirically supported?) Sociocultural Explanations: cultural and structural factors:,Exchange theory,Revolve around the notion that individuals attempt to maximize their rewards and minimize their costs to achieve the mo

30、st favorable outcome. John Edwards refers to the “exchange theory of homogamous mating” in which people with equivalent resources develop relationships. Wallers Principle of Least Interest suggests that the partner who is less interested in continuing the relationship has the advantage, and trades h

31、is/her company for the other persons acquiescence to his or her wishes: a power relation.,Equity Theory: Another variation which proposes that a person is attracted to another by a fair deal rather than by a profitable exchange.,Stimulus-Value-Role Theory: Bernard Murstein mate selection moves throu

32、gh three stages (stimulus, value, and role).,Stimulus-Value-Role Theory,StimulusIndividuals are drawn to each other based on external characteristics. ValueIf mutual attraction occurs, partners compare values. RoleIf values are similar, partners begin to confide in each other, fulfill tasks, and evaluate each other as potential spouses.,Filter Theories: People defines fi