AdultDevelopmentPaper121 xHolt-Lunstandetal.1 Gallagher-Thompsonetal.20011 Utzetal20021 Fingerman19961
Adult Development and Aging
Paper #1
: Adult Development & Aging in the Movies
This paper asks you to look at images of adults (young, middle-aged, old) in movies and to compare these images to findings from scientific studies. This packet contains a list of movies and journal articles that you can use for comparisons. Your paper should address the connections between the research articles and images of adult development and aging in the media. Your paper should also address the places where the images of adult development shown in the movies differ from the research findings in the journal article.
This is the assignment:
1. Read the journal article carefully.
2. Then, go back and take notes on the people who participated in the study. There should be a section of the article labeled: Participants, sample, subjects, etc. Consider factors such as their age, gender, ethnicity, geographic region, etc. How many participants were included in the study? When you watch the film, compare the sample to the people portrayed in the movie. It could be that the movie portrayal and the research findings do not agree – on how adults of a certain age, gender, etc should behave, think, act, or feel.
3. Look carefully at the questions the researchers asked and at the findings reported (including tables and graphs). Write down what you consider to be the 2 or 3 main questions of the study. Then, write down the main findings with respect to each question.
4. When you watch the movie, ask:
a. How similar (e.g., age, gender, etc) were the study participants and the characters in the movie?
b. Are there scenes in the movie that illustrate the study findings? If not, what are possible reasons?
c. What aspects of adult development or what possible research questions do you think the movie addresses that were not the focus of the research article?
Be sure you address these three questions (a,b,c) in your paper and 2 and #3 above (i.e. what are the characteristics of the study participants, what were the main research questions, and what are the findings from the study).
5. Then write the essay.
a. Make a list of comparisons of key points between the research article and the film
b. Use an outline to write the paper
6. Avoid the first person pronoun “I” in the paper. Write as an “objective” narrator.
7. Write more than one draft of the essay. Use spell check and grammar check AND print out your paper and proof read it. Rewrite it.
8. Don’t wait until the last minute – even best selling authors write multiple drafts!
Paper #1
SOME IDEAS FOR HOW TO APPROACH THIS ASSIGNMENT
In the Fingerman (2000) article that you will read for this class on mother/daughter conflict, it was reported that nearly 90% of older mothers and daughters get along very well, but the daughters (more than mothers) still experience some conflict with their mothers. Approximately 10% of mothers and daughters have highly conflicted relationships. The conflict usually involves the mother feeling excluded from the daughter’s life and daughter feeling the mother is critical and intrusive. You should also know that the study was based on a sample composed primarily of European American women with high education levels.
You might then watch The Joy Luck Club. You would notice that the women portrayed in the movie are Asian and the mothers are recent immigrants to the U.S. You would also note that the film portrays the mothers and daughters as having a fair amount of tension in their relationship. You could compare the 4 different mother/daughter pairs in the movie to the types of mother/daughter pairs in the research article. If the mothers and daughters in the film described conflicts not reported in the research article, you should consider reasons why this is the case. Perhaps the movie exaggerates normal mother/daughter relations? Perhaps these patterns reflect difficulties unique to women who immigrate to the U.S. and their daughters? Finally, what other issues related to adult development are addressed in the movie and might be the focus of research – but were not addressed in the assigned research article?
Paper # 1: List of Journal Articles and Films
Below is a list of films to view and related journal articles. For Paper #1 you are to view one movie and read the related article.
Note: Magazines and newspapers are periodicals, not journals. Examples of journals include: The Journal of Marriage and the Family, Family Process, Family, The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Psychology and Aging, The Gerontologist, The Journals of Gerontology, The International Journal of Human Development, and Health and Aging.
Film: About Schmidt
Utz, R. L., Carr, D., Nesse, R., & Wortman, C. B. (2002). The effect of widowhood on
older adults’ social participation: An evaluation of activity, disengagement, and continuity theories. The Gerontologist, 42, 522-533.
Film: American Beauty
Wethington, E. (2000). Expecting stress: Americans and the “midlife crisis”. Motivation
and Emotion, 24, 85-103.
Film: Iris
Gallagher-Thompson, D., Dal Canto, P. G., Jacob, T., & Thompson, L. W. (2001). A
comparision of marital interaction patterns between couples in which the husband does or does not have Alzheimer’s disease. Journals of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 56, S140-S150.
Film: Because I Said So
Fingerman, K. L. (1996). Sources of tension in the aging mother and adult daughter
relationship. Psychology and Aging, 11, 591-606.
Film: Soul Food
White, L. K., & Riedman, A. (1992). Ties among adult siblings. Social Forces, 71, 85-
102.
Film: The Bucket List
Holt-Lunstad, J., Uchino, B. N., Smith, T. W., & Hicks, A. (2007). On the importance of
relationship quality: The impact of ambivalence in friendships on cardiovascular functioning. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 33, 278-290.
Grading Criteria for Paper #1
The following criteria will be considered in grading Paper #1
Understanding and Use of Journal Article
1. Factual understanding of journal article.
a. Able to describe major characteristics of the sample used in the study
b. Able to describe major research questions addressed in the article
c. Able to describe major findings of the study
Comparison of article and film and integration of ideas
1. You need to go beyond summarizing the article and summarizing the film.
You should compare and integrate material from the article and material from the film.
2. Compare similarities and differences between participants in article and characters in the film.
3. Discuss how and why findings from the study are apparent (or not apparent) in the film. Discuss why the film reflects (or does not reflect) findings from the study. In answering this question, consider characteristics of study participants vs. film characters, types of issues portrayed in film, and contexts in which the people are portrayed.
4. Identify at least one other aspect of adult development and aging that was portrayed in the film but was not a major finding in the research article.
Clarity of Writing
1. A well-organized essay requires a tight outline. These are short papers and thus each paper needs to be well organized and well written. You could attach a copy of the outline for the paper (will not be counted in word count) – to show organization of paper
2. Each paragraph should have one clear thesis statement.
3. Write in an impersonal form; do not use “I” or personal pronouns.
4. Clearly state at the beginning of the paper the article and film that you are discussing.
5. There should be a title page. Be sure that your name is in a header on each page. Number the pages.
Appropriateness of Assignment
1. Late papers will lose points
2. Grading will consider sentence structure, grammar, & spelling. Proofread your paper
3. Grading will consider guidelines for paper length, double-spaced, margins, title page, etc.
Creativity, Sophistication, Hard work
ADULT DEVELOPMENT & AGING
GERO 44030
Grading Criteria for Paper #1
Name: _____________________________________
Date:
Assignment: Adult Development & Aging in the Movies
Total: ____ /40
1. Understanding and Use of Journal Article: ___ / 10
___ / 5 Able to describe major characteristics of the sample
___ / 5 Able to describe major research questions/findings
2. Comparison of article and film and integration of ideas ___ / 14
___ / 4 More than a summary of the article and film. Compares and integrates material from the article and material from the film.
___ / 5 Compare similarities and differences between participants in the article and characters in the film
___ / 5 Discuss how and why findings from study are apparent (or not apparent) in the film. Discuss why film does/does not reflect findings. Consider study
participants vs. characters, types of issues in film, contexts in which people
portrayed.
3. Clarity of Writing ___ / 12
___ / 4 Organization (paper is logically organized with an introduction and conclusion)
___ / 4 Clear thesis statements
___ / 1 Written in impersonal form
___/ 3 Sentence structure, grammar, and spelling
4. Creativity, Sophistication, Hard work ___ / 4
Comments:
On the Importance of Relationship Quality: The Impact of Ambivalence in Friendships
on Cardiovascular Functioning
Julianne Holt-Lunstad, Ph.D.
Brigham Young Universit
y
Bert N. Uchino, Ph.D., Timothy W. Smith, Ph.D., and Angela Hicks, Ph.D.
University of Utah
ABSTRACT
Background: Social relationships are reliably related to
rates of morbidity and mortality. One pathway by which
social relationships may influence health is via the impact
of relationship quality on cardiovascular reactivity during
social interactions. Purpose and Method: This study exam-
ined the effects of the quality of a friendship on cardiovascu-
lar reactivity when speaking about positive or negative life
events with an ambivalent or supportive friend. To examine
this, 107 healthy male and female adults (and their same-
sex friend) were recruited. Results: Results revealed that
participants exhibited the greatest levels of systolic blood
pressure reactivity when discussing a negative event with an
ambivalent friend compared to a supportive friend. We also
found higher resting levels of heart rate and lower respiratory
sinus arrhythmia among those who brought in ambivalent
friends than those who brought in supportive friends.
Conclusion: Individuals may not be able to fully relax in
the presence of ambivalent friends and may not benefit from
support during stress. This research may help clarify the
health-related consequences of differing types of social
relationships.
(Ann Behav Med 2007, 33(3):
278
–290)
INTRODUCTION
Social relationships play a central role in our everyday
lives, and evidence suggests that these relationships influ-
ence physical health (1,2). Social support is inversely
related to the prevalence and incidence of several diseases;
the most common being coronary heart disease (CHD)
(3–5). These findings are often taken as evidence for the
health benefits of social relationships, however, even close
relationships are not entirely positive (6). Although social
relationships can be sources of warmth, caring, nurturance,
and understanding, they can also be sources of conflict,
criticism, jealousy, and rejection (7). Research from the
Terman Life Cycle study suggests that past negativity in
social relationships predicts earlier mortality (8,9).
Therefore, a more complete understanding of the health-
related consequences of social relationships requires con-
sideration of both their positive and negative aspects. Of
importance, positivity and negativity are separable dimen-
sions (10–13), and many individuals construe their relation-
ships as having a mix of positive and negative feelings (e.g.,
an overbearing mother, competitive friend, volatile
romance [14]). As noted by others, the implications of
this ‘‘ambivalence’’ within relationships have not been
adequately considered in social support theory or research
(7,14,15).
Given that ambivalent relationships are characterized
by a mix of both positive and negative feelings, it is unclear
what the implications of these relationships may be for our
health. Can individuals benefit from the positivity associa-
ted with ambivalent relationships or is negativity more sali-
ent, leading to harmful effects? Although more research is
needed, our prior findings suggest that ambivalent relation-
ships are distinct from supportive (i.e., primarily positive),
indifferent (i.e., not particularly positive or negative), and
aversive (i.e., primarily upsetting) relationships and may
be related to detrimental outcomes (16). For example,
older adults with higher numbers of ambivalent relation-
ships within their network had higher levels of depressive
symptoms and greater cardiovascular reactivity (CVR)
during stress (14). In addition, ambulatory systolic blood
pressure (SBP) was highest when participants were inter-
acting with individuals they rated as normally feeling
ambivalent toward compared to those toward whom they
felt primarily positive, indifferent, and primarily negative
(17). Thus, individuals may not be able to benefit from
the positivity associated with ambivalent relationships
and such ambivalence may be more detrimental than sim-
ple negativity.
Prior research indicates that ambivalent relationships
may be health relevant; however, they have failed to eluci-
date the context in which ambivalent ties may be harmful.
For instance, although the ambulatory blood pressure
study (17) did assess the quality of the interaction, infor-
mation on the exact nature of the interaction (e.g., whether
they were actually seeking support or simply having a cas-
ual conversation) was not obtained. In our prior work we
have found that individuals did not benefit from support
received from an ambivalent friend compared to a support-
ive friend (18). However, this study did not include other
interaction contexts (e.g., discussion of positive events) as
Reprint Address: J. Holt-Lunstad, Ph.D., Department of Psy-
chology, Brigham Young University, 1024 SWKT, Provo, UT
84602. E-mail: julianne.holt-lunstad@byu.edu
# 2007 by The Society of Behavioral Medicine.
278
comparisons. Participants in this study were also not ran-
domly assigned to relationship conditions, hence making
this study open to alternative explanations (e.g., due to
existing personality differences). Thus, we need to better
understand the context that may explain how such relation-
ships impact health.
Two potential broad mechanisms could underlie the
associations between ambivalent relationships and detri-
mental cardiovascular outcomes. First, interactions with
ambivalent ties may entail significant interpersonal stress
(i.e., stress enhancing hypothesis). If a social network mem-
ber is primarily a source of negativity, one may habituate to
the aversive relationship by using specific coping strategies
(e.g., discounting or simply avoiding these people). How-
ever, an ambivalent network member (someone you feel
particularly positive and negative toward) may be less pre-
dictable, less easily discounted or avoided, and thus may
be associated with heightened interpersonal stress (14,19).
Thus, individuals may not be able to relax when in the pres-
ence of or while interacting with ambivalent network ties. A
second pathway involves interference with social support
(i.e., support interference hypothesis). Social relationships
that are supportive are thought to have an effect on health
by buffering the negative effects of stress. However, despite
the positivity that exists in ambivalent relationships indivi-
duals may not be able to benefit from support from such ties,
because the coexisting negativity may lead them to either
avoid disclosure or question the intent, sincerity, or possible
subsequent consequences of support (20). Although the
stress-enhancing and support interference hypotheses rep-
resent distinct pathways by which ambivalence may influ-
ence health, they are not necessarily competing hypotheses
as both may potentially be operating (e.g., it is possible that
stress may be operating to interfere with support).
We tested these hypotheses by examining the impact of
ambivalent relationships on CVR in a controlled
experimental design. Exaggerated CVR to stressful situations
may influence the development and=or expression of CHD
(for reviews, see 21,22). We randomly assigned participants
to discuss positive, negative, and neutral life events with an
ambivalent or supportive friend. If ambivalent relationships
are general sources of stress (i.e., stress-enhancing hypoth-
esis), we would expect increased reactivity when individuals
are discussing both positive and negative events with an
ambivalent friend as compared to a supportive friend. How-
ever, if individuals simply do not benefit from support during
times of stress (i.e., support interference hypothesis), then we
should see increased reactivity primarily when participants
disclose negative events to an ambivalent friend.
METHOD
Design
Three between-participants factors were included:
relationship quality (supportive, ambivalent), event (positive,
negative), and participant gender (male, female). The depen-
dent variables were residualized change scores for physiologi-
cal measurements and several self-report measures.
Participants were randomly assigned to the conditions of
relationship quality and event discussion. Relationship type
and partner gender was held constant, with all participants
required to bring a same-sex friend.
Participants
Participants were recruited from introductory psy-
chology courses at the University of Utah, received extra
course credit, and included 56 women and 51 men
(N ¼ 107). The participant’s friend received $15 compen-
sation. Consistent with prior research (e.g., 23), the follow-
ing self-reported inclusion criteria were used to select
healthy participants: no hypertension, no cardiovascular
prescription medication, no history of chronic disease with
a cardiovascular component (e.g., diabetes), no recent his-
tory of psychological disorder (e.g., major depressive dis-
order), no tobacco use, and no consumption of more
than 10 alcoholic beverages per week.
Procedure
Testing was divided into two sessions. In the first, part-
icipants were asked to complete the Social Relationships
Index SRI (detailed next) in which they rated their social
network. We then asked the participants to contact and
bring in a specific friend from their list of rated relation-
ships. This individual was selected by the experimenter
based on each participant’s random assignment to relation-
ship (supportive or ambivalent) condition.1 Participants
were unaware of the relationship condition. Approximately
2 weeks later, participants brought their friend to the lab-
oratory (see Table 1 for summary of procedures and mea-
sures). Upon arrival both individuals completed an
informed consent document and a demographic question-
naire. Participants’ self-reports of health were checked for
reliability against the inclusion criteria. Participants and
their friend were told that because cardiovascular function-
ing can differ according to whether one is speaking or not,
we needed to be certain that participant was speaking dur-
ing certain portions of the experiment. The friends were
told that part of their responsibility during the experiment
was to keep their friend talking. The friend was told,
‘‘Sometimes the best way to do this is to be supportive
and sometimes it is to stir things up a bit; however, all
we ask is that you say what would come natural to you
in the situation.’’
Participants were then escorted by themselves to a
separate sound-attenuated room where four mylar bands
1 Two individuals did not have both ambivalent and support-
ive relationships listed on their SRI. When dropping these indivi-
duals from our analyses the results remain consistent; therefore,
results reported include these participants’ data.
Volume 33, Number 3, 2007 Relationship Quality and Cardiovascular Function 279
were placed in the tetrapolar configuration for impedance
cardiograph recordings according to published guidelines
(24). An occluding cuff was placed on the left arm. They
were seated in a comfortable chair and asked to complete
questionnaires (see measures). Following this adaptation
period of approximately 20 min, the friend was escorted
into the room and seated next to the participant. The par-
ticipant and friend were instructed to relax for the next
12 min while resting measures of cardiovascular function
were obtained. Both were told not to talk during the rest
period, and a curtain was drawn between them. As a neu-
tral comparison to the event discussion, the participant and
friend were instructed to discuss with each other for 4 min
what they do during a normal weekday, alternating speak-
ing and listening for 1-min epochs to hold constant speech
effects on CVR (e.g., 25).
Before the event task began, a second baseline was also
obtained. The procedures were identical to the first with
the exception that it was 7 min in length. Participants were
then asked to list up to five past experiences that were
particularly negative=positive (depending on random
assignment) that they felt comfortable discussing with their
friend as part of our experiment. These were rated on a
scale of 1 to 5 on degree of importance, positivity, and
negativity, in comparison to all possible negative=positive
events in their life. The experimenter selected a situation=
event that was rated as moderately high such that all dis-
cussions, regardless of condition, would be relatively
equivalent on these aspects to control for intensity. Exam-
ples of negative events discussed included almost getting in
a car accident, making a commitment but then didn’t fol-
low through, meeting girlfriend’s family, boyfriend still
maintains friendship with ex-girlfriend, getting fired from
part-time job, and finals. Examples of positive events
discussed included boyfriend flying in from out of town
for surprise visit, spending the day with Mom, getting
a promotion at work, and making the dance team. The
participant and friend discussed the event for a total of
6 min. Participants were asked to discuss three aspects of
the selected situation=event: first to describe in detail the
experience=event, second to talk about his or her thoughts
and feelings regarding this situation=event, and finally to
discuss how they handled the situation=event and=or how
they might have changed anything. After each aspect, the
friend was given 1 min to respond. Thus, again they alter-
nated speaking and listening for 1-min epochs to hold
constant speech effects on CVR.
Cardiovascular assessments were taken during each dis-
cussion task and the last 5 min of each baseline. Heart rate
(HR), impedance-derived measures, and respiratory sinus
arrhythmia (RSA) were obtained continuously, while systolic
blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were
obtained once every 90 sec during baseline and at the begin-
ning of each minute during the discussion tasks. Self-reported
state anxiety was assessed before and after each discussion
task. Perceptions of the friend during each of the discussions
were rated using the Impact Message Inventory (IMI; see
description next) and completed immediately following each
discussion. At the completion of the valenced discussion part-
icipants completed a rating of their thoughts and feelings
regarding the discussion as a manipulation check.
Measures
Self-Report Measures
Social relationships index (SRI). The SRI was deve-
loped as a self-report version of the social support inter-
view (26,27). Participants rated up to 10 friends in terms
of how helpful and upsetting they were from 1 to 6
(extremely), and on length of time known, amount of con-
tact per week, importance, predictability, and how likely
they are to go to this person for support. In our prior work,
TABLE 1
Physiological and Psychological Dependent Measures Taken During Each Experimental Epoch
Experimental Epoch Length of Epoch Measurement(s)
Prescreening SRI: rating up to 10 friends
Prebaseline 1 Consent forms, background and health questionnaires, ratings of friend (e.g.,
SRI, QRI)
Baseline 1 12 min SBP, DBP, HR, RSA, PEP, TPR, CO
Postbaseline1 State anxiety,
Neutral discussion 4 min SBP, DBP, HR, RSA, PEP, TPR, CO
Postneutral Discussion State anxiety, IMI
Baseline 2 7 min SBP, DBP, HR, RSA, PEP, TPR, CO
Postbaseline 2 State anxiety
Prep for Discussion 2 Experience rating
Discussion 2 6 min SBP, DBP, HR, RSA, PEP, TPR, CO
Postdiscussion 2 State anxiety, IMI, Postdiscussion Rating, and thought listing
Note. SRI ¼ social relationships index; QRI ¼ quality of relationships index; SBP ¼ systolic blood pressure; DBP ¼ diastolic blood pressure;
HR ¼ heart rate; RSA ¼ respiratory sinus arrhythmia; PEP ¼ pre-ejection period; TPR ¼ total peripheral resistance; CO ¼ cardiac output;
IMI ¼ impact message inventory.
280 Holt-Lunstad et al. Annals of Behavioral Medicine
these measures of positivity and negativity were temporally
stable with significant 2-week test–retest correlations
(r ¼ .81, p < .001 for positivity; r ¼ .83, p < .001 for
negativity) (14). Scores were used to determine the relation-
ship qualities (i.e., supportive, ambivalent, aversive, indif-
ferent) in the participant’s social network. We selected a
friend who was rated as either supportive or ambivalent
(depending on random assignment) for them to bring to
the laboratory. Although our model also includes relation-
ships that would be classified as aversive (high negativity,
low positivity) and indifferent (low positivity, low nega-
tivity), it would have been unfeasible and unlikely that we
could get participants to bring such relationships in with
them to the lab, so we focused primarily on friendships.
Friends were rated in terms of three different contexts: (a)
when they need support such as advice, understanding, or
a favor; (b) when they are excited, happy, or proud of some-
thing; and (c) during routine daily interactions, conver-
sations, or activities. The individual selected to come in
with the participant was the individual listed who most
highly characterizes the assigned condition (i.e., supportive
or ambivalent) across all three contexts. Consistent with our
prior work, the criterion used for the classification of
supportive was a rating of a 3 or greater on measures of
positivity and a rating of 1 (not at all) on negativity. For
the classification of ambivalent, a rating of a 3 or greater
on the measures of positivity and a rating of greater than
1 on negativity were required.
Quality of relationships index (QRI). The QRI (28)
assesses supportive and conflictual aspects of relationships
and was used as an independent check on the SRI-based
relationship classification. This 29-item inventory includes
three scales that assess perceptions of social support,
conflict, and depth in a specific relationship. The internal
reliability was found to be high (.85, .91, and .84, respect-
ively) for ratings of friends (28).
IMI, form II. The IMI (29) is a circumplex-based
inventory designed to assess perceptions of another’s
interpersonal behavior, along the dimensions of friendliness
versus hostility and dominance versus submissiveness. It
contains 32-items with 4 items per octant. Kiesler and
colleagues (30) provided evidence supporting the circumplex
structure of the IMI and demonstrated its adequate
psychometric properties. It has been found to be sensitive
to similar interpersonal manipulations in prior research (31).
State anxiety scale. A short form of the Spielberger
State-Trait Anxiety Scale was administered to participants
prior to and following each discussion (32). This measure
was used as a manipulation check of the stressfulness of
discussing a negative versus a positive event=situation. Prior
work has found the internal consistency of the scale to be
high (Cronbach’s a ¼ .78–.80).
Additional manipulation checks. To ensure that
manipulations were having their intended effect, a short
questionnaire was devised that we refer to as the Post-
Discussion rating (see Table 2 for list of items).
Participants were asked to rate their current feelings on a
6-point scale from 1 (not at all) to 6 (extremely). For
TABLE 2
Mean Post Discussion Ratings as a Function of Relationship Quality
Postdiscussion Ratings Supportive Ambivalent
1. How open were you to disclosing this event with your friend? 5.39 (0.86) 5.33 (0.89)
2. How comfortable did you feel discussing this event with your friend?�� 5.44 (0.72) 4.96 (1.13)
3. How helpful was your friend during the discussion?�� 4.59 (1.14) 3.98 (1.41)
4. How challenging was the event discussion task? 2.81 (1.47) 2.83 (1.40)
5. How upsetting was your friend during the discussion?�� 1.19 (0.39) 1.54 (0.88)
6. How mixed and conflicted were your thoughts and feelings toward your friend during the discussion?�� 1.30 (0.60) 1.65 (0.78)
7. How effortful was it to do the discussion task? 2.70 (1.34) 2.63 (1.26)
8. How threatening was the event discussion task? 1.43 (0.86) 1.65 (0.91)
9. How difficult did you find the discussion task? 2.11 (1.19) 2.24 (1.33)
10. How natural was this discussion compared to normal discussions with this friend?� 3.52 (1.38) 2.91 (1.42)
11. To what extent did your friend respond as normally as he or she would outside this experiment? 4.24 (1.32) 3.85 (1.41)
12. How familiar was your friend with the event that you discussed?y 3.56 (1.89) 4.15 (1.64)
13. When discussing this event with this person in the past, how helpful has your friend been?� 4.63 (1.31) 4.06 (1.50)
14. When discussing this event with this person in the past, how upsetting has your friend been?�� 1.20 (0.53) 1.62 (0.93)
15. To what extent have you discussed this event with this friend before? 2.41 (1.11) 2.61 (1.12)
16. To what extent have you discussed this event with anyone before? 2.69 (1.10) 2.78 (0.90)
Note. Values are mean (standard deviation).
yp < .10. �p < .05. ��p < .01. ���p < .001.
Volume 33, Number 3, 2007 Relationship Quality and Cardiovascular Function 281
Items 15 and 16, the scale was from 1 (never) to 6 (at great
lengths).
Cardiovascular Measures
Blood pressure. A Dinamap Model 8100 monitor
(Critikon Corporation, Tampa, FL) was used to measure
SBP and DBP. The Dinamap uses the oscillometric
method to estimate blood pressure. Blood pressure
assessments were obtained via a properly sized occluding
cuff positioned on the upper left arm of the participant
according to the manufacturer’s specifications. Mean SBP
and DBP for each epoch were averaged across minutes to
increase the reliability of these assessments.
Impedance-derived measures. A Minnesota Impedance
Cardiograph Model 304B was used to measure the
electrocardiogram, basal thoracic impedance, and the
first derivative of the impedance signal (dZ=dt). Cardiac
output (CO), total peripheral resistance (TPR), and pre-
ejection period (PEP) were derived according to
published guidelines (33). For a more detailed description
of these measures and methodology see Uchino et al. (34).
RSA. RSA provides a noninvasive measure of
parasympathetic control of the heart and can vary
according to age and posture2 (see 35). RSA was
calculated based on the digitized interbeat intervals that
were checked and edited for artifacts using the detection
algorithm of Berntson and colleagues (35). After linear
detrending, the heart period time series was band pass
filtered from .12 to .40 Hz using an interpolated finite
impulse response filter (36). RSA was then calculated as
the natural log of the area under the heart period
spectrum (calculated by a Fast Fourier Transform and
scaled to msec2=Hz). RSA was calculated on a minute-
by-minute basis and aggregated across minutes within
each epoch to increase reliability.
RESULTS
Manipulation Checks and Self-Report Measures
Relationship Classification and Correlates
To verify the classification of relationship types, we
examined its stability across sessions. The ratings of posi-
tivity and negativity taken together indicate that our classi-
fication criteria were met in most cases, and the overall
classification remained relatively stable.3 The test–retest
correlations for ratings of positivity and negativity are r
¼ .60 (p < .0001) and r ¼ .72 (p < .0001), respectively.
In a second set of analyses we examined the association
between our initial social relationship classification with
the independent measure of social relationships (i.e.,
QRI). Results revealed a significant main effect for
relationship quality (as rated on the SRI) on the Support,
Conflict, and Depth scales of the QRI (see Table 3).
Friends classified as ‘‘Supportive’’ on the SRI were also
rated higher on support and depth, and lower in conflict,
than were friends classified as ‘‘Ambivalent.’’ Finally, we
examined if friendships characterized as ‘‘ambivalent’’ or
‘‘supportive’’ differed on other relationship dimensions.
4
There was no significant difference on length of time they
have known these friends and amount of contact with these
friends. There was also no significant difference in predict-
ability of supportive and ambivalent friends. However,
friends classified as supportive had higher ratings of impor-
tance than friends classified as ambivalent, although both
types of friends were perceived as highly important. For
items assessing how likely the participant was to go to their
friend during the three (negative, positive, and neutral)
contexts, we found a relationship categorization main
effect for the positive, negative, and neutral contexts. Part-
icipants’ were more likely to seek out their supportive
friend than ambivalent friends in positive situations (when
‘‘really excited, happy or proud of something’’), during
stressful times (‘‘When you need support such as advice,
understanding, or a favor. . .’’), and during ‘‘routine daily
interactions, conversations, or activities.’’ Despite the
relative difference, ratings of likelihood to seek out the
friend were high across both supportive and ambivalent
friends.
2
Based on the average age of our sample and RSA being
assessed in the seated position, the relative mean population
RSA value would be 6.6.
3
There were 19 participants originally classified as supportive
that increased in negativity at Time 2 such that they no longer met
the initial classification criteria. Likewise, there were 8 parti-
cipants that were originally classified as ambivalent that decreased
in negativity at Time 2 such that they no longer met the initial cri-
teria. Subsequent analyses were performed dropping these parti-
cipants, and all major findings were consistent with what has
been reported.
4Despite randomization to the relationship conditions we
found that our groups were not equivalent on numbers of sup-
portive and ambivalent friends in their network. That is, indivi-
duals randomly assigned to bring in a supportive friend had
significantly more supportive network friends (p < .05), whereas
individuals randomly assigned to bring in an ambivalent friend
had significantly more ambivalent network friends (p < .05).
Because of this, we reran our main analyses controlling for the
number of supportive and ambivalent friends, and our physiologi-
cal findings were unchanged. Therefore, it is unlikely that these
broader social network differences were responsible for our
findings.
282 Holt-Lunstad et al. Annals of Behavioral Medicine
Event Ratings and Postdiscussion Ratings
The second factor that we manipulated was the valence
of the discussion topic. Ratings of topic intensity indicated
no significant group differences (M ¼ 2.9; 3 ¼ moderate),
suggesting that the topic selection procedure was effective
and differences between conditions could not be simply
explained in terms of the psychological intensity of the
positive and negative events.
A number of other items intended to be manipulations
checks were also included in our Postdiscussion Rating
Scale. There were several main effects for relationship
classification (see Table 2). When asked about discussing
the same event with their friend in the past, we found a
Relationship�Condition interaction on ratings of upset,
F(1, 97) ¼ 7.12, p < .01; x2 ¼ 0.30. In follow-up compari-
sons participants perceived their ambivalent friends as
more upsetting in the past than supportive friends when
discussing the current negative event (p < .05) but not
when discussing the current positive even
t.
The IMI
The IMI was completed twice, once after each dis-
cussion. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) results revealed a
main effect for relationship categorization for ratings on
the Friendliness and Dominance dimension, taken after
both the neutral discussion and the event discussion (see
Table 3). Supportive friends were perceived as greater in
friendliness and less dominant than ambivalent friends dur-
ing both discussions.
Anxiety
A mixed ANOVA was used to examine levels of anxi-
ety across our four epochs (first baseline, neutral dis-
cussion, second baseline, event discussion). There was a
main effect for relationship classification during the first
resting baseline, neutral discussion, and the second base-
line; however, the final rating taken at the completion of
the event discussion was not significant (see Table 3). Over-
all, the Period�Relationship Classification interaction
was not significant. Thus, ratings of anxiety were consist-
ently higher among those who had brought in an ambiva-
lent friend than among those who brought in a supportive
friend. We also examined change in anxiety while control-
ling for baseline. Results revealed only a main effect for the
event discussion, F(1, 102) ¼ 5.02, p < .05, x2 ¼ 0.16, such
that discussing negative events was associated with
larger increases in ratings of anxiety than discussing posi-
tive events.
TABLE 3
Psychological Variables According to Relationship Quality
Supportive M (SD) Ambivalent M (SD) F x2
SRI Positive Time 1 5.40 (0.63) 4.34 (0.92) 46.59���� 0.30
Positive Time 2 5.31 (0.63) 4.66 (0.68) 25.59���� 0.19
Negative Time 1 1.03 (0.17) 2.74 (1.03) 140.1���� 0.57
Negative Time 2 1.18 (0.30) 2.09 (0.70) 77.11���� 0.42
Time known (years) 6.42 (6.28) 6.75 (7.66) 0.06 �0.88
Contact (days per week) 4.21 (2.30) 4.31 (2.14) 0.05 �0.91
Predictability 4.35 (1.38) 4.33 (1.46) 0.00 �0.99
Importance 5.36 (0.99) 4.88 (1.17) 4.81� 0.54
Likelihood to seek out friend
Stressful situations 4.97 (1.02) 4.40 (1.23) 6.3� 0.69
Positive situations 5.12 (0.99) 4.55 (1.18) 7.24�� 0.67
Neutral situations 5.10 (1.07) 4.61 (1.16) 4.6� 0.60
QRI Support 25.64 (2.70) 22.87 (3.27) 21.78���� 0.37
Conflict 16.06 (3.08) 22.36 (6.21) 43.2���� 0.54
Depth 19.75 (2.76) 17.83 (3.89) 8.5�� 0.18
IMI Friendliness (N) 4.59 (1.13) 3.22 (1.37) 31.01���� 0.46
Friendliness (E) 4.52 (1.29) 3.26 (1.72) 17.92���� 0.32
Dominance (N) �0.83 (0.63) �0.35 (0.98) 8.63�� 0.18
Dominance (E) �0.98 (0.69) �0.62 (1.06) 4.37� 0.09
Anxiety Baseline 1 1.35 (0.40) 1.51 (0.46) 4.19� 0.11
Discussion 1 (N) 1.38 (0.40) 1.71 (0.46) 14.71��� 0.33
Baseline 2 1.30 (0. 36) 1.55 (0.46) 8.60�� 0.22
Discussion 2 (E) 1.69 (0.55) 1.88 (0.58) 2.37 0.05
Note. The scale for SRI ranged from 1 (not at all) to 6 (extremely). SRI ¼ social relationships index; QRI ¼ quality of relationships index; IMI-
¼ impact message inventory; N ¼ neutral discussion; E ¼ event (positive or negative) discussion.
y
p < .10. �p < .05. ��p < .01. ���p < .001. ����p < .0001.
Volume 33, Number 3, 2007 Relationship Quality and Cardiovascular Function 283
Primary Analyses
The major physiological dependent measures were
SBP, DBP, and HR given these measures have been linked
to significant health outcomes (37,38). In addition, because
blood pressure and HR are multiply determined cardio-
vascular endpoints, cardiac impedance derived measures
of PEP, RSA, CO, and TPR were also used as dependent
measures in an effort to better assess the underlying deter-
minants responsible for the changes in CVR across con-
ditions.
An average baseline value was calculated for each of
our physiological variables to increase the reliability of
these assessments (39). During the neutral and event dis-
cussions, the participant and friend alternated speaking
for 1 min each so that we had an index of when the partici-
pant was speaking versus listening. Because there were no
differential effects of our manipulations as a function of
speaking and listening on any of our physiological vari-
ables, an average for the neutral and an average for the
event discussion were calculated to increase the reliability
of these assessments (39). Change scores were then com-
puted as an index of reactivity (40). Because basal level
can affect reactivity scores (41), baseline measures of
physiological functioning were entered into all of the reac-
tivity analyses as a covariate. Finally, effect sizes for signifi-
cant findings were calculated using omega-squared (42).
Baseline and Reactivity During the Neutral Task
Because participants were randomly assigned to the
conditions of relationship quality and event discussion,
we did not expect group differences on any of our cardio-
vascular assessments during initial baseline. However, con-
sistent with the state anxiety assessment during baseline, we
found a relationship categorization main effect for baseline
HR, F(1, 98) ¼ 5.28, p ¼ .02, x2 ¼ 0.11, with higher HR
among those that brought in ambivalent friends than those
who brought in supportive friends (see Table 4). Consistent
with prior research, there was also a gender main effect for
SBP, F(1, 100) ¼ 38.63, p < .0001, x2 ¼ 0.52, with higher
resting SBP among men (M ¼ 118.84 mmHg) than women
(M ¼ 109.95 mmHg).5
We also examined the impact of the relationship cate-
gorization (i.e., supportive, ambivalent) and gender of par-
ticipant on CVR during the neutral discussion while
controlling for the first baseline. There were no significant
main effects or interactions for SBP, DBP, or HR
reactivity.
5Upon inspection, we found a participant who demonstrated
extreme baseline data, which was six standard deviations above
the mean; therefore, this participant’s data were excluded for all
analyses of physiological measures. When this participant was
identified as an outlier, we reanalyzed our physiological data. It
is important to note that although degree of freedom and means
changed slightly, none of our findings changed significance.
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284 Holt-Lunstad et al. Annals of Behavioral Medicine
Baseline and Reactivity to Discussing Positive or
Negative Events with Supportive or Ambivalent Friends
Preliminary analyses of the second baseline replicated
the gender main effects for SBP, F(1, 102) ¼ 33.86,
p < .0001, x2 ¼ 0.48, and replicated the relationship main
effect for HR, F(1, 98) ¼ 6.98, p < .01, x2 ¼ 0.15. Due to
the lack of relationship categorization differences in reac-
tivity during the neutral task, simple change scores (event
discussion � second baseline) were used while controlling
for gender and second baseline for the remainder of our
analyses.
Even though preliminary analyses showed that parti-
cipants perceived the positive and negative events to be
equally intense, a significant main effect was found for
SBP reactivity, F(1, 100) ¼ 7.74, p < .01, x2 ¼ 0.24. The
negative event discussion evoked greater SBP reactivity
than the positive event discussion. These data are consist-
ent with research suggesting a negativity bias on physio-
logical function (43).
We next evaluated our primary hypotheses about the
context in which ambivalent relationships may be detri-
mental. Results revealed a statistical interaction between
relationship quality and the event topic on reactivity for
SBP, F(1, 100) ¼ 13.05, p ¼ .0005, x2 ¼ 0.36; see Figure 1.
Consistent with the support interference hypothesis, con-
trasts reveal participants exhibited greater SBP reactivity
when discussing a negative event with an ambivalent friend
(M ¼ 9.6 mmHg D) than with a supportive friend
(M ¼ 5.4 mmHg D), F(1, 48) ¼ 8.72, p < .01, x2 ¼ 0.70.
Further, among participants interacting with an ambiva-
lent friend, those discussing a negative event displayed
greater SBP reactivity (M ¼ 9.6 mHg D) than did those dis-
cussing a positive event (M ¼ 3.4 mHg D), F(1,
49) ¼ 20.99, p < .0001, x2 ¼ .90. There was no significant
difference between discussing positive and negative events
with a supportive friend. These results, combined with
our results from the neutral interaction, suggest that
ambivalent relationships are not just general sources of ten-
sion during interactions but may be distressing primarily in
the context of seeking support during stress. However,
when discussing positive events there was a significant dif-
ference between discussions with supportive and ambiva-
lent friends, F(1, 50) ¼ 5.24, p < .05, x2 ¼ 0.19.
Unexpectedly, discussing a positive event with an ambiva-
lent friend was associated with lower reactivity.
Follow-Up Analyses
Clarification of SBP Finding During
Positive Discussions
Given the unexpected finding that individuals discussing
a positive event with an ambivalent friend showed the lowest
levels of reactivity we performed several focused follow-up
analyses. Two possible explanations for this finding are that
participants were able to get more excited telling their sup-
portive friend about something fantastic that occurred
recently or that participants interacting with ambivalent
friends disengaged from the positive event discussion task.
To test these explanations, a repeated measures ANOVA of
the neutral reactivity and the event reactivity was explored
directly contrasting neutral and positive discussions with
ambivalent friends and supportive friends. Results revealed
a significant Relationship�Period interaction, F(1, 49) ¼
4.39, p < .05, x2 ¼ 0.16. Upon further inspection, there was
no significant difference in reactivity during the neutral task
and the positive discussion for those talking to their
supportive friend. In contrast, our data show that there was
a significant decrease in reactivity between the neutral task
(M ¼ 8.16 mmHg) and the positive event condition
(M ¼ 3.37 mmHg) for those with ambivalent friends,
F(1, 25) ¼ 7.78, p ¼ .01, x2 ¼ 0.33. Overall, these data do
not support the possibility of exaggerated reactivity among
those discussing positive events with a supportive friend;
rather, the data suggest a possible disengagement from the
task for those interacting with ambivalent friend.
Analyses of Underlying Determinants of Heart Rate and
Blood Pressure
We followed up our significant results by analyzing the
impedance-derived measures associated with the underly-
ing determinants of HR (i.e., PEP and RSA) and BP
(i.e., TPR, CO). There was also a significant difference dur-
ing the first baseline period for relationship categorization
on RSA, F(1, 92) ¼ 17.91, p < .0001, x2 ¼ 0.35, and
second baseline period, F(1, 92) ¼ 15.92, p < .0001,
x2 ¼ 0.32, with greater RSA among those who brought
in a supportive friend than those who brought in an
ambivalent friend. To examine the potential mediating
effect of RSA, we reanalyzed the baseline HR data using
RSA as a covariate and the effect became nonsignificant.
This was consistent across the first, F(1, 91) ¼ 0.04,
p ¼ .84, and the second, F(1, 91) ¼ 0.03, p ¼ .86, baseline.
These data suggest that the baseline differences in HR are
due to parasympathetic influences on the heart. There were
FIGURE 1 Systolic blood pressure reactivity according to
relationship classification and discussion.
Volume 33, Number 3, 2007 Relationship Quality and Cardiovascular Function 285
no other significant main effects or interactions for RSA,
PEP, TPR, or CO (see Table 4 for details). As a result,
no clear evidence of the underlying determinants for the
Relationship�Event interaction for SBP was found.6
Analysis for Potential Mediation
Because we found a significant interaction on the Post-
discussion Rating of past upset between relationship quality
and event discussion valence that was in the same direction
as our interaction effect for SBP reactivity, we did explora-
tory analyses to examine potential mediation. Thus, we
were interested in the PDR item that asked ‘‘When discuss-
ing this event with this person in the past, how upsetting has
your friend been?’’ Results revealed that past upset was sig-
nificantly correlated to SBP reactivity (p < .05). Because
the primary stress-enhancing effect was found in the nega-
tive event discussion, we repeated this analysis looking at
ambivalent-supportive friend differences only in the nega-
tive event discussion. The previously significant simple
main effect was rendered nonsignificant when controlling
for perceptions of how upsetting they had been in the past.
Thus, past upsetting feelings toward the friend when they
had discussed the current negative event mediated the
relationship quality differences on SBP reactivity.
DISCUSSION
The purpose of this study was to address two questions
regarding the specificity of the association between social
relationships and health. First, are ambivalent relationships
associated with health relevant processes? Second, under
what conditions are ambivalent ties detrimental? Our data
suggest that interactions with ambivalent ties were generally
viewed more negatively and that individuals interacting
with an ambivalent friends showed greater SBP reactivity
primarily when disclosing a negative personal event. More-
over, this effect was mediated by how upsetting the friend
had been in the past when discussion the negative event.
Thus, to the extent that SBP reflects a detrimental health-
relevant process, ambivalent relationships are a potentially
negative influence on health, especially during discussion of
prior stressful personal events.
One main goal of this study was to evaluate two broad
mechanisms potentially linking ambivalent ties to detri-
mental outcomes. First, it is possible that individuals are
unable to receive or perceive effective social support from
ambivalent relationships during times of need. Second,
social interactions with ambivalent network ties may gener-
ally be associated with significant levels of interpersonal
stress (44). Our main finding for the physiological data,
highest SBP reactivity associated with discussing negative
events with the ambivalent friend, is consistent with the
support interference hypothesis. Given the joint positivity
and negativity associated with ambivalent relationships it
may be that when participants seek out support from an
ambivalent friend that the support received is not trusted
or they may feel blamed instead of understood. It is also
possible that ambivalent friends may be perceived as more
critical given that they were rated as lower in warmth and
higher in control than relationships characterized as
supportive. Together, our data suggest that support from
such ambivalent ties in times of stress may be less effective,
with such effects being mediated by how upsetting the
friend had been in past discussions of the negative event.
These data may also suggest a more context-specific
interpretation of the stress-enhancing hypothesis such that
ambivalent friends may be associated with increased inter-
personal stress only when discussing negative events.
Although our reactivity data appear consistent with
the support interference hypothesis, other data indicate
that we cannot discount the stress-enhancing hypothesis
as our data also demonstrate that ambivalent relationships
may have more subtle effects on physiological processes.
For example, self-reports of anxiety were consistently
higher among those who brought in an ambivalent friend
than a supportive friend across every portion of the experi-
ment. We also found consistently higher levels of HR and
lower RSA among those who brought in ambivalent
friends than those who brought in supportive friends.
Because baseline measures were assessed with only a cur-
tain separating them from their friend, it suggests that
the mere presence or the anticipation of interacting with
an ambivalent friend may be taxing for these individuals.
Therefore, those paired with ambivalent friends may have
been unable to fully relax and hence regulate their cardio-
vascular system to the extent participants with supportive
friends were able to do. It is important to mention that
although RSA is a marker of vagal (parasympathetic) con-
trol of the heart (45), respiratory rate and amplitude can
influence RSA independent of vagal control (46). Some
studies suggest that ‘‘corrected’’ and ‘‘uncorrected’’ assess-
ments produce similar conclusions under stress paradigms
(47–49). However, one limitation of our findings is that
we do not have respiratory data to directly examine this
issue. Therefore, it is possible that participants who
brought in an ambivalent friend may have had lower
RSA than those who brought in a supportive friend simply
because they were breathing at a faster rate during the
baseline period. Future research will be needed to examine
the plausibility of this alternative explanation.
One relatively unexpected but interesting finding indi-
cated the lowest levels of reactivity occurred among those
interacting with ambivalent friends in positive contexts.
Our ancillary analyses suggest the possibility that indivi-
duals may have disengaged from the discussion as
evidenced by their lower reactivity compared to the neutral
discussion condition. Relevant research by Gable and
6
The lack of findings for impedance-derived measures poten-
tially mediating blood pressure changes may be due to the greater
measurement error inherent in deriving CO and TPR.
286 Holt-Lunstad et al. Annals of Behavioral Medicine
colleagues (50) suggests that this disengagement may have
important intra-and interpersonal consequences. Social
capitalization, telling others about positive events in one’s
life, is thought to be associated with greater positive affect
over and above the positivity associated with the event.
There are multiple potential mechanisms that influence self
and relationship processes including: the process of reliving
the event can boost positive affect, sharing the event
strengthens the relationship, and=or it can serve to boost
self-esteem by being seen favorably in the eyes of others.
Thus, if individuals disengage when discussing positive
events with ambivalent friends, they may not experience
the upward spiral of positive affect and well-being (51).
However, such explanations are speculative and future stu-
dies will be necessary to examine these possibilities.
Overall, our data suggest that ambivalent relationships
do not afford the same emotional and physical benefits that
supportive relationships do and may be potentially detrimen-
tal. One possible reason for these deleterious influences is
that general perceptions of the relationship may be driving
participants’ interpretation of the situation. A person’s his-
tory of experiences (positive and=or negative) with a friend
provides a lens or schemata by which current and future
events are interpreted. For example, an ambivalent friend
who is behaving supportively in our study may be assumed
to be ‘‘trying to look good for the experimenters.’’ Thus, it
may not be anything in particular the friend is doing in the
moment but rather the individual’s perception of that friend
that may be driving the response. Our mediational analyses
are consistent with this interpretation as how upsetting the
friend had been in the past discussions of the negative event
appeared responsible for the differences in SBP reactivity.
Taken together, these findings suggest that one’s history
and overall perception of the friend may be more important
than the behavior during the interaction.
There are several limitations of this study that warrant
discussion. The first concerns the generalizability of the
sample. This study only included college-age participants
who were healthy. In addition, our sample primarily com-
prised White participants. The extent to which these find-
ings can be expanded to other ages, socioeconomic
status, health status, and ethnicities cannot be determined.
In addition, all participants were required to bring in a
same-sex friend. It is possible that participants may have
reacted differently if they were interacting with an opposite
sex individual and=or someone of a different relationship
type (i.e., romantic partner, sibling, coworker). It is also
possible that the effect of relationship type on CVR may
be underestimated in this study due to some degree of
imprecision in the classifications (see footnote 3).
Another limitation of this study is the ecological val-
idity to social support or disclosure processes. It is possible
that the structured (alternating minutes) conversation
reduced the naturalness and flow of the discussions
between friends. Although it is difficult to determine pre-
cisely the extent to which the naturalness was reduced,
we did behavioral code the videotaped interactions,7 and
these data suggest that any effect this may have had was
equivalent when discussing events with supportive and
ambivalent friends. Alternatively it is possible that people
may not actually choose to seek out their ambivalent friend
when they need support. Although we found that the like-
lihood to seek out supportive friends was relatively higher
than ambivalent friends, ratings of likelihood were still
(between moderate and very) high.
It is also unclear whether having ambivalent friends
would be better or worse than having no friends at all
(social isolation, e.g., 52). Although both may be bad, con-
flict and support are separate dimensions (53). There are
some data to suggest that negativity in social relationships
has a stronger effect than support (26,54,55). Alternatively,
because we find that most of our participants have both
supportive and ambivalent individuals in their network, it
is also possible that their supportive relationships can buf-
fer the negative effects of having ambivalent relationships
(see 56). It is also possible that individuals may benefit
from noninterpersonal disclosure such as diary=journal
entries (57,58) and prayer (59). Future research will be
needed to directly contrast these possibilities.
We should also note that the actual health relevance of this
study is less clear, because it was a cross-sectional study using
young participants. Many of the health outcomes predicted by
social relationships, including cardiovascular disease, develop
slowly over time. Despite our young sample, the average length
of time they had known their friend was 6.6 years—approxi-
mately one third of their lifetime. Our data attest to the stability
of relationships even among young college students who are
typically in a transitional stage socially. Due to the stability
of many other types of social relationships (e.g., familial ties,
spouse; see 60), the health effects of these ambivalent social
relationships may be more important. It is also possible that
any potential negative impact of ambivalent relationships
may be limited if individuals can avoid contact with them.
Our data, however, revealed no difference in the amount of
contact participants have with ambivalent and supportive
friends. Future studies examining ambivalent feelings among
married couples may be especially promising given the strong
links of marriage to health (61,62). Likewise, studies examining
ambivalent relationships among older adults or clinical popu-
lations may also provide insight on the relative impact of social
relationships in more health relevant populations.
Despite the limitations, this study has a number of
strengths. First, the increased ecological validity is associa-
ted with the use of an existing friendship. Many prior lab-
oratory studies examining social support have been limited
7
We had two raters, blind to condition, rate the videotaped
interactions. Reliability between the coders for each (between
.41 and .69) was significant (p < .05). Based on these ratings, it
appears that the structured nature of the conversation did not dif-
ferentially impact the flow of conversation. Interested readers can
get a copy of these analyses by contacting the primary author.
Volume 33, Number 3, 2007 Relationship Quality and Cardiovascular Function 287
(63) by the use of strangers, confederates, or the exper-
imenter to operationalize support, in that they fail to cap-
ture nuances associated with existing relationships (i.e.,
one’s history with that person). A further strength of this
study is that we randomly assigned participants to bring
in a particular type of relationship (supportive or
4ambivalent) from their larger network. By randomly
assigning the type of friend (supportive=ambivalent) for
individuals to bring in as part of the experiment, we are
able to prevent individuals from self-selecting their friend
and potentially biasing our results. Last, these data were
strengthened by independent confirmation of relationship
type and the inclusion of standardized measures of basic
interpersonal dimensions (i.e., IMI).
Overall, these results may have important implications
for the conceptualization andassessment of social relation-
ships in the health domain. Simply assessing levels of social
support (e.g., positivity) may obscure the natural hetero-
geneity that exists in people’s relationships by ignoring co-
occurring levels of negativity. This point may be especially
important to consider in developing social support interven-
tions (10). Our results suggest that implementing a support
intervention (without regard to extent of positivity and
negativity within that relationship) could potentially lead
to detrimental outcomes. More generally, it is our hope that
such a multidimensional approach to the study of social
relationships may be useful in understanding the underlying
associations between social relationships and health.
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Psychology and Aging
1996. Vol. 11. No. 4.
591
-60
6
Copyright 1996 by the American Psychological Association. Inc.
0882-7974/96/13.00
Sources of Tension in the Aging Mother
and Adult Daughter Relationship
Karen L. Fingerman
Pennsylvania State University
This study explored sources of tension in the aging mother-adult daughter relationship. Forty-eight
dyads of healthy mothers over the age of 70 years (mean age = 76 years) and their adult daughters
(mean age = 44 years) were interviewed individually and then together about their relationship.
Responses to questions about tension were coded as referring to intrusiveness, exclusion, inappro-
priate care of self or other, eras referring to general habits or traits. The term developmental schism
is introduced to explain possible sources of tension in this relationship. Aging mothers and middle-
aged daughters are at different points in their adult development; developmental discrepancies may
foster interpersonal tension in their relationship. Mothers and daughters who described sources of
difficulty that were not related to developmental differences had more positive regard for the
relationship.
Psychologists regard difficulties between offspring and par-
ents as integral to child and adolescent development, but pat-
terns of tension between aging parents and offspring have been
all but ignored in the psychological literature. Intergenerational
strife in early life has been linked to the child’s developmental
tasks of acquiring a sense of autonomy and identity (Ainsworth,
1979; Bettleheim, 1965; Erikson, 1963; Paikoff & Brooks-
Gunn, 1991). Adult offspring are thought to have acquired
identities and to have matured to a point where they no longer
need to struggle against their parents (Baruch & Barnett, 1983;
Blenkner, 1963). The establishment of identity does not pre-
clude tension stemming from other issues, however. In fact, ten-
sion between parents and offspring earlier in life may have less
to do with the child’s individual need to establish autonomy
than with the differences between the child’s and the parents’
stages of development. Parent-child tension may stem from the
difficulties that individuals who are at discrepant points in de-
velopment confront when trying to maintain an intimate rela-
tionship. Such discrepancies in developmental stage may also
underlie intergenerational difficulties in adulthood.
Association between older parents and their offspring is not
This research was originally part of a doctoral dissertation conducted
at the University of Michigan, Department of Psychology, chaired by
Eric Bermann and Joseph Veroff. A draft of this article was written
while the author was on the faculty at the University of San Francisco.
Lillian Troll and Diana Engle provided invaluable comments on drafts
of this article. Rosemary Blieszner offered advice concerning the fram-
ing of the problem.
This study was partially supported by the following awards: Univer-
sity of Michigan Rackham Graduate School Dissertation Award, Amer-
ican Psychological Association Dissertation Grant, Society for the
Study of Social Issues Grants-in-Aid Award, and a grant from Sigma Xi.
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Karen
L. Fingerman, Department of Human Development and Family Stud-
ies, 110 Henderson Building South, Pennsylvania State University, Uni-
versity Park, Pennsylvania 16802. Electronic mail may be sent via In-
ternet to kfingerman@psu.edu.
mandatory, and it could presumably be discontinued when dis-
satisfying. Accordingly, theorists have suggested that parents
and offspring who experience difficulties in adulthood maintain
more distant relationships (Bedford & Blieszner, in press).
Some psychologists have argued, however, that interpersonal
tension is not antithetical to close relationships in later life (e.g.,
Rook, 1984, 1990). Tension may play an important role in any
intimate relationship, and sources of tension may reflect differ-
ences in the ways in which individuals approach the relation-
ship. In fact, understanding sources of tension may illuminate
the roles and perspectives each individual brings to a given rela-
tionship. Thus, investigating what causes difficulties between
aging parents and their offspring may lend insight into the na-
ture of intergenerational relationships in old age.
Aging Mothers and Adult Daughters
The purpose of this study was to examine sources of tension
in aging mother-adult daughter relationships when mothers are
healthy, active, and independent. Although there is considerable
individual variation in parents’ and children’s interactions, the
quality of parent-child relationships in adulthood tends to vary
as a function of gender. Yet, a lack of differentiation in previous
research between older fathers and older mothers and among
adult daughters, sons, and spouses has obscured an understand-
ing of unique emotional characteristics of particular parent-
offspring combinations (Thompson & Walker, 1984; Troll,
1988). The present study focused specifically on the mother-
daughter dyad because this relationship tends to be distinct
from other parent-child combinations in later life.
Mother-daughter bonds tend to be the strongest and most
enduring of filial connections (Rossi & Rossi, 1990; Rossi,
1993). Women generally exhibit greater activity and more con-
sistent interactions with members of generations above and be-
low them than do men (Fischer, 1986; Hagestad, 1984; Walker
& Thompson, 1983). In addition, Troll and Smith (1976) ar-
gued that mothers and daughters communicate with one an-
other directly, whereas other parent-offspring combinations
591
592 FINGERMAN
tend to engage in triadic interactions, usually involving a
spouse. Fathers often interact with their offspring through the
mother, and sons often relate to their own parents through their
wives. Thus, negative interactions may have a greater impact on
the mother-daughter relationship than they would on relation-
ships that are less close and less insular. In fact, previous re-
search has found that mothers and daughters claim to experi-
ence greater tension, as well as greater intimacy, in their rela-
tionships (Lehr, 1984; Troll, 1987).
Not only may the experience of tension play a more impor-
tant role in mother-daughter relationships than in relationships
involving sons or fathers, but the sources of difficulties in the
relationship appear to vary as a function of gender. Lehr (1984)
analyzed conflict situations from biographies of the life histories
of 141 women and 185 men. She found that women’s conflicts
tended to be over family matters. Men tended to have less fre-
quent conflicts, which were related to occupation, leisure time,
or political events. Hagestad (1984, 1987) examined sources of
intergenerational conflict among 148 three-generation families
in Chicago and found similar gender differences. In her study,
relatives reported that family matters were principal causes of
trouble with daughters, mothers, and grandmothers. Political
and social issues tended to underlie difficulties with male re-
lations. Lehr’s and Hagestad’s findings suggest that tension be-
tween female relatives in adulthood may be related to relation-
ships in the family. However, neither study examined genera-
tional differences in the experience of interpersonal tension.
The question arises, do mothers and daughters cite the same
issues as sources of difficulties in their relationships?
Both the sources of tension and the bonds mothers and
daughters maintain appear to center around their shared invest-
ment in familial relationships, and particularly their own rela-
tionship. In this respect, mother-daughter relationships appear
to share the dyadic feature of marital relationships. Spousal ten-
sion also often revolves around the marital relationship itself.
In fact, difficulties in such relationships may stem from the de-
mands of maintaining a dyadic relationship. Moreover, there
appear to be systematic differences related to role and back-
ground that influence perceptions of difficulties. For example,
researchers have found that gender differences in communica-
tion styles appear to carry over into marital conflict; the im-
plication of this research is that people in different social roles
may communicate their feelings differently when they are upset
(Acitelli, Douvan, & Veroff, 1993; Crohan, 1992; Gottman,
1979; Gottman & Krokoff, 1989). Older mothers and daugh-
ters occupy different roles in the relationship and are also con-
fronting different developmental changes; sources of tension
may reflect differences in their developmental positions coupled
with these role differences.
Building on Lehr’s (1984) and Hagestad’s (1984, 1987)
findings, in the present study I sought to further differentiate
sources of tension between aging mothers and adult daughters.
Existent research on intergenerational conflict has tended to be
atheoretical in nature. Although the present study was also in-
tended to be descriptive, mothers’ and daughters’ responses to
open-ended questions asked in individual and joint interviews
were coded into content categories on the basis of a theoretical
understanding of adult development.
The Developmental Schism
Tension between older mothers and adult daughters may re-
flect issues pertaining to recent changes in their lives and their
present point in development, or to more continuous or unre-
solved early problems that have endured over the course of a
lifetime (Havighurst, 1972; Steinman, 1979; Weishaus, 1978).
Continuous or reactivated problems are often assessed in the
context of present developmental changes. For example, physi-
cal or mental decline that leads to an aging parent’s new depen-
dencies on offspring may evoke early feelings of rivalry with sib-
lings (Brody, 1985). Although negative feelings may be associ-
ated with earlier patterns, the source of difficulty is most readily
attributed to current changes in the relationship, in particular
the parent’s decline. For this reason, in the present study I fo-
cused on understanding the role of current developmental
differences in generating mother-daughter tension.
The field of gerontology is based on a premise of continuing
development across the course of adulthood. Accordingly, in
many aspects of functioning, older adults are expected to be
at a different point in their development than are middle-aged
adults. Two people from different cultures may experience
problems in their relationship as a function of their discrepant
backgrounds. So, too, may mothers and daughters experience
problems as a function of being at different points of develop-
ment. The premise of this study is that interpersonal tension
between mothers and daughters may stem from what I will refer
to as a “developmental schism.” A developmental schism in-
volves a gap created by differing developmental processes expe-
rienced by parents and offspring at any age. Developmental
differences may exist across a wide range of developmental is-
sues and may result in interpersonal tension, regardless of the
quality of attachment or the strength of the relationship. The
source of such tensions may change as mothers and daughters
seek to maintain an ongoing intimate relationship across a
lifetime.
The developmental schism is related to sociological concep-
tions of parent-child differences in perceptions of their relation-
ship. Bengtson and Kuypers (1971) introduced the term “de-
velopmental stake” to describe intergenerational differences in
perceptions of compatibility. They argued that parents are in-
vested in offspring as a symbol of their own future, and thus,
perceive greater compatibility with offspring. Offspring wish to
establish their own mark on the world, and thus perceive less
similarity. The developmental stake can be viewed as an exam-
ple of a developmental schism, in which intergenerational dis-
parities result from a difference in developmental tasks. How-
ever, the premise of the developmental stake is linked to parent-
child roles, without consideration of changes that occur within
these roles over the course of the lifespan. The investment is
assumed to be constant across time. The principle of a develop-
mental schism subsumes the concept of developmental stake.
Parents and offspring may experience tension not only as a
function of the positions they occupy in their relationship at the
sociological level, but as a function of discrepancies in specific
developmental issues at a more psychological level. The devel-
opmental issues an individual faces change over the course of
the lifespan, from the two-year-old’s increasing needs for auton-
omy to an older adult’s possible increasing needs for care and
OLDER MOTHER AND DAUGHTER SOURCES OF TENSION 59
3
support in the face of debilitating illness. Thus, although par-
ents and children may experience tension stemming from de-
velopmental differences across the lifespan, the specific mani-
festation of developmental schisms in the relationship would be
expected to change as individuals mature and confront new de-
velopmental changes.
Developmental schisms may be found throughout the par-
ent-child life cycle; individuals confront new developmental
tasks beginning at birth and ending at death (Erikson, 1963;
Havighurst, 1972). Not all developmental tasks infringe equally
on the parent-child relationship, however. For example, the
middle childhood years are often considered ones of relative
tranquillity in the parent-child relationship. Yet, children are
clearly undergoing developmental tasks during this period, as
are their parents. In fact, certain changes may be viewed as pos-
itive for the relationship by one or both parties. The child’s sec-
ond year of life is marked by gains in language ability, as well as
by efforts to establish autonomy. These linguistic advances are
often viewed favorably by parents, who find it easier to commu-
nicate with a child whose communication style begins to match
their own more closely. Offspring may appreciate parents* more
relaxed parenting styles as they mature in their roles over time.
Not all developmental changes generate parent-child tension,
just as not all gender differences generate marital tension.
Rather, where tension exists in parent-child relationships, un-
derstanding the interplay of developmental patterns may ex-
plain the tension. Developmental issues that generate friction
are likely to involve changes that infringe on the other person in
some manner.
In other words, the key aspects of understanding tension lie
in each individual’s perception of the source of tension and in
their interactions together. Parents who perceive their two-year-
old’s increasing autonomy as a sign of budding genius are un-
likely to frame her exploratory behavior as a source of friction,
and are also unlikely to interact with her in a manner that gen-
erates tension around her exploration. In a parallel situation, a
middle-aged daughter who views her mother’s desire to travel to
India as a sign of her continuing vitality is less likely to consider
this issue a source of tension and less likely to discuss this issue
as a problem with her mother. A middle-aged daughter may be-
gin to worry about her mother’s aging and mortality as she con-
fronts her own transition to mid-life (Cicirelli, 1988; Neugar-
ten, 1968). Such a daughter might worry about her mother and
view her desire to travel to India as too risky. She may hint to
her mother that a trip to India is inappropriate at her age, and
mother-daughter tension may ensue from such interactions.
Developmental Issues in This Study
The issues examined in this study reflect disparities stem-
ming from differences in the lives of middle-aged and older
women that might generate tension in the mother-daughter re-
lationship. To understand tension in relationships between
younger mothers and daughters, different developmental issues
would need to be examined. Discrepancies in many aspects of
development might have an impact on relationships in later life
between older parents and their middle-aged offspring. For ex-
ample, there is a lot of literature emphasizing the stresses that
middle-aged daughters and their mothers experience when the
mother’s physical changes necessitate changes in patterns of de-
pendency (Brody, 1985, 1990; Litvin, 1992; Semple, 1992;
Stull, Kosloski, & Kercher, 1994; Zarit, Reever, & Bach-Pe-
terson, 1980). There has been little attention to tension mothers
and daughters experience when both are relatively healthy. The
present study focused on a limited examination of two general
areas where developmental differences might create tension be-
tween middle-aged daughters and older mothers. The areas ex-
amined included perceptions of the parameters of the relation-
ship and perceptions of the other’s self care.
The manifestation of developmental concerns may vary as a
function of culture, ethnicity and social class. Although the pro-
posed sources of disparity are steeped in theory of adult devel-
opment that may cut across groups, the ways in which individ-
uals interpret the developmental differences they have with their
parents or offspring may vary as a function of their own cul-
tural, educational, or other past experiences. The issues exam-
ined in this study are thought to be most applicable to the well-
educated, healthy American sample used. Other areas of
difficulties might be more salient amongst other groups. The
fundamental question is how human development contributes
to difficulties between parents and offspring rather than the par-
ticular issues examined.
Importance of the Relationship
The first area of tension explored in this study involved
differences in perceptions of the salience of the relationship.
Mothers and daughters may experience tension in later life
stemming from differences in the primacy they give to their re-
lationship. In recent years, there has been considerable research
investigating and substantiating a model originally proposed by
Carstensen(1987, 1991, 1992), referred to as socioemotional
selectivity theory. Carstensen posited that as people age, they
narrow the focus of their social network to maximize emotional
gains from fewer relationships. According to the socioemotional
selectivity model, older adults might view their relationships
with offspring as more important than offspring do. For exam-
ple, middle-aged daughters would be expected to have a greater
number of ongoing social relationships than would mothers.
Thus, relationships with mothers might be less salient and
meaningful to daughters. This possible discrepancy in the im-
portance of the relationship is an example of a developmental
schism. Tension may result from the mother’s increasing social
selectivity if mothers and daughters perceive the other’s behav-
iors as either demanding of. or inattentive to. their relationship.
The individual descriptions of tension might involve instances
where a daughter perceives her mother as intrusive or where a
mother perceives her daughter as excluding her. Yet, the un-
derlying cause of this tension may reflect levels of investment in
the relationship.
Generational differences in perceptions of the parameters of
the relationship were anticipated. Hypotheses were generated in
a manner reflecting the descriptive nature of the data. Daugh-
ters were expected to be more likely to cite their mothers’ intru-
siveness as sources of difficulty, particularly when the mothers
rated the relationship as more salient. Mothers were expected
to be more likely to describe feelings of exclusion from their
daughters’ lives, again particularly when they were more in-
594 FINGERMAN
vested in the relationship. In the joint interview, dyads were ex-
pected to discuss disagreements over contact.
Care of Self or Other
Changes pertaining to the mother’s aging may also evoke ten-
sion in the mother-daughter relationship. Offspring may expe-
rience stress in anticipation of problems in the aging process,
even when the parent is still healthy and independent. Midlife is
a period in which individuals begin to think about how much
time they have left; middle-aged adults ponder growing old and
dying (Kastenbaum&Aisenberg, 1972; Neugarten, 1968). Ac-
cordingly, middle-aged adults may become increasingly aware
of their parents’ aging. In fact, as a middle-aged daughter be-
comes aware of her mother’s aging, she may see it as a greater
contributor to problems than her mother does. Cicirelli (1988)
coined the term “filial anxiety” to describe tension generated
when an adult child worries about care an elderly parent may
need someday. As a middle-aged daughter worries about her
mother’s aging, an older mother may resent her daughter’s con-
cern about her future decline while she is still healthy. It is also
possible that a mother would consider her own aging as a source
of tension with her daughter, particularly if health declines pre-
vented the mother from engaging in the relationship as actively
as she had in previous times. In the present study, awareness of
the mother’s aging was examined as a potential source of ten-
sion. It was anticipated that healthier older mothers would be
less likely to describe their aging as an issue in their relationships
with their daughters than would their daughters.
A complementary category of tension was examined pertain-
ing to the daughter. A mother’s complaints about her daughter’s
self-care may be related to enduring aspects of the maternal role
or to developmental changes in the daughter’s life. Across the
lifespan, a mother might be expected to act “motherly” by ex-
pressing concern over her daughter’s well-being. However, there
may be shifts in this pattern as the mother and daughter grow
older. The mother’s solicitude for the daughter in general may
be seen as an ongoing source of tension in the relationship, par-
ticularly if she has always been a mother who worries. Yet.
changes in the nature of the concerns may be manifested as the
daughter grows older. Concerns may begin to center around the
daughter’s care for her own spouse or her own children; these
concerns are related to the daughter’s current position in the
lifecycle. Thus, the mother may continue to function as a
mother in her solicitude for daughter. At the same time, the
mother’s concerns over the daughter’s ability as a wife or mother
may reflect changes in their relationship related to individual
development.
Nondevelopmental Issues
The mother-daughter relationships examined in this study
have endured over the course of a third to half a century. In
addition to issues related to present developmental status,
mothers and daughters might also experience more continuous
issues as sources of present tension. Although all mothers and
daughters differ in age, these differences may be more important
or less important across relationships at different points in time.
Sources of tension unrelated to developmental differences were
also considered in this study.
Mothers’ and daughters’ complaints about the others’ habits,
traits, or general behavior were examined. These sources of ten-
sion were not considered to represent developmental schisms.
Such problems may be inherent to interpersonal relationships.
Regardless of gender, age, or cultural differences, people en-
gaged in intimate relationships may lake note of faults in the
other person. In the context of mother-daughter relationships,
a mother may be bothered by her daughter’s housekeeping or
lack of promptness at any age. A daughter may feel that her
mother has had embarrassing habits across the lifespan. Such
difficulties seem to be less a function of the mother’s aging, the
daughter’s adult status, or the quality of their relationship than
a matter of perceiving something undesirable in an otherwise
loved other. Elsewhere, researchers interested in friendships re-
port that older adults who maintain a problematic friendship in
later life tend to see the source of difficulties in that relationship
as something pertaining to their friend’s personality attributes
(BIieszner& Adams, 1995).
The distinguishing aspect of perceiving a habit or trait in a
loved one as the thing that annoys one most lies in the ability to
see this trait as an aspect of the other person unrelated to the
relationship. It is possible to see something annoying about the
other person that infringes on the relationship, in which case
the problem becomes something the other “is doing to you.”
References to habits or traits here refer to issues perceived as a
part of a loved one that may be annoying but are not experi-
enced as an affront. The ability to perceive faults in a parent
without taking these faults personally may be part of what
Blenkner (1963) referred to as filial maturity. She argued that
offspring may undergo filial maturity during their thirties, al-
lowing adult children to perceive their parents as human beings
with weaknesses and vulnerabilities. An aspect of this matura-
tion may involve refraining tensions so that they are no longer
perceived as being based in the relationship but, rather, are per-
ceived as being based in the parent. The ability to perceive un-
desirable attributes in a loved parent suggests an absence of the
types of developmental differences that get played out in parent-
child tensions. Such perceptions on the part of offspring may
contribute to a better parent-offspring relationship in later life.
By contrast, an aging mother who sees her child’s flaw as a
source of tension may feel worse about her relationship with
that offspring. Previously, researchers have found that parents’
perceptions of how their grown children turned out has an effect
on their own well-being (Ryff, Lee, Essex, & Schmutte, 1994).
In the early parenting years, parents may derive a sense of com-
fort from the thought that their children will outgrow whatever
current developmental issues seem to underlie tensions in their
relationship. By old age, parents may feel more comfortable
with developmental discrepancies than do offspring. For exam-
ple, an aging mother might be able to accept the idea that her
working daughter has many competing demands on her time,
and she might use this to explain the differences in their levels
of investment in the relationship. A mother’s sense that the
daughter is lazy, however, might be related to her greater dissat-
isfaction with the relationship.
Assessing Tension in Aging Parent-Child Relationships
Finally, this study was designed to gather information about
sources of difficulty by using dyadic analyses obtained across
OLDER MOTHER AND DAUGHTER SOURCES OF TENSION 59
5
two interviews. Previous research has generally concluded that
parent-child tension is minimal in later life because older par-
ents often report that they have no problems in their relation-
ships with their offspring (Mancini, 1989; Streib & Beck,
1980). However, the failure to obtain data may be an artifact of
the methods used to assess such tension rather than an actual
lack of tension. Much previous research on parent-child con-
flict in later life has relied on survey items involving closed-
ended ratings (Aldous, 1987; Cicirelli, 1983a, 1983b; Thomp-
son & Walker, 1984; Whitbeck, Hoyt, & Huck, 1994). In their
review of a decade of literature on aging parents, Mancini and
Blieszner (1989) suggested that a better understanding of con-
flict and tension might be obtained with open-ended interviews,
allowing time for participants to build rapport with the in-
terviewer. Talbott (1990) obtained information pertaining to
older widows’ difficulties with adult children indirectly, using
open-ended interview discussions. She did not systematically
seek information concerning tension, but rather coded sponta-
neous mentions of problems from lengthy interviews.
The present study employed an open-ended interview tech-
nique, designed to more systematically assess descriptions of
problems in the relationship. A broad understanding of diffi-
culties was used. An emphasis was placed on gathering infor-
mation about the causes of problems rather than about the com-
munication of such problems. Aging mothers and adult daugh-
ters may not openly confront one another with things that
bother them in their relationship (Fingerman, 1995; Wodak &
Schulz, 1986). Thus, the term tension was operationalized to
emphasize internal negative experiences as well as overt con-
frontation, including interpersonal difficulties, negative feel-
ings, disparities of interest, miscommunications, and open
confrontation.
To understand the role that each individual’s perceptions of
the relationship play in interpersonal tension, both parties’
points of views must be considered (Thompson & Walker,
1982). Previous studies addressing intergenerational conflict
have been limited to only the parents’ (Aldous, 1987; Talbott,
1990) or the offsprings’ (Cicirelli, 1983a; Troll, 1987) reports
of difficulties. In the present study, mother-daughter pairs were
examined using a dyadic approach. Furthermore, a joint assess-
ment of tension may lend insight not available from compari-
sons of individual interviews (Acitelli, Douvan, & Veroff,
1993). When individuals are interviewed alone, they may de-
scribe underlying problems in the relationship that may not be
recognized by the other person. When two people are inter-
viewed together about difficulties in their relationships, they
may be more likely to discuss issues that receive attention in the
relationship, problems of which both individuals are aware.
In the present study, individual and joint interviews were
conducted.
Although the principal focus of this study was on providing a
descriptive understanding of dyadic perceptions of sources of
tension, the impact of such tension was also considered. The
criterion variable for the study was the quality of the mother-
daughter relationship, operationalized as mothers’ and daugh-
ters’ regard for the relationship. Elsewhere, researchers have in-
dicated that the quality of the parent-child relationship in later
life is important to adults’ general well-being and functioning
(Ryffetal., 1994).
Table 1
Demographic Characteristics of the Sample
Characteristic
Marital status
Married
Remarried
Engaged or living with other
Divorced
Widowed
Single
Religion
Protestant
Catholic
Jewish
Other
Years of education
At least some high school
High school
Some college
College
Graduate school
Employment status
Currently works for pay
Has worked for pay
Has never worked for pay
Mothers
(n = 48)
1
8
1
0
2
2
7
0
18
10
1
4
6
5
11
15
8
9
3
41
4
Daughters
(n = 48)
35
5
2
4
1
1
14
7
16
11
1
2
7
20
18
34
11
3
Sources of tension may be related to levels of regard for the
relationship. It was hypothesized that daughters who experi-
enced tension around their mothers’ habits or traits would have
higher regard for their relationship than would those daughters
who described issues related to differences in their individual
development. Therefore, daughters’ citing issues related to the
parameters of the relationship, the mother’s aging, and the
mother’s failure to care for self were expected to be associated
with less regard for the relationship. Daughters’ describing is-
sues that seem to be less related to individual development, such
as taste in clothes, where to have lunch, or general attributes
were expected to be associated with higher regard for the rela-
tionship. For mothers, issues related to developmental differ-
ences were expected to be associated with higher regard for the
relationship, whereas perceptions of daughters’ flaws were ex-
pected to be related to lower regard for the relationship.
Method
Participants
The data presented here are derived from a larger study of aging
mothers and their adult daughters. The larger study was designed to
assess positive and negative aspects of mother-daughter relationships.
The sample consisted of 48 dyads ( N = 96) of older mothers (mean age
= 76.01 years. SD = 5.22 years) and their adult daughters (mean age =
44.02 years, SD = 7.03 years). Table I contains individual demographic
variables describing the mothers and daughters in this sample. Forty-six
of these dyads were White, and the other 2 were African-American.
Mothers and daughters were highly educated, though the daughters
tended to be more highly educated than their mothers. All women
claimed to be in good health at the time of the study. Mothers reported
being ill an average of 13.60 days (SD = 25.30 days) in the past year,
compared with daughters’ reports of 6.45 days ( S D – I I .60 days). (For
596 FINGERMAN
further details pertaining to this sample and recruitment procedures,
see Fingerman, 1995.)
Mothers and daughters all resided in separate households, within an
average of l-hr’s drive of one another. Mothers and daughters reported
frequent contact with one another. Ninety percent of mothers and
daughters reported at least biweekly visits and weekly telephone calls.
Thirty mothers were either divorced or widowed and resided alone, and
all but 6 daughters had either a spouse or a live-in boyfriend. Of those 6
daughters, all but 2 had serious on-going relationships with a man.
Mothers had an average of 3.06 children (SD = 1.83), with an average
of 1.96 residing in the area (including the participant daughter).
Daughters had an average of 2.45 children (SD = 1.33), with an average
of 0.88 children (SD = 1.00) residing in their homes.
The women who participated in this study are not representative of
the general population. The mothers in this study were healthier, wealth-
ier, and more well-educated than most other women their age. However,
the aging mothers in this study and their relationships with their daugh-
ters provided a forum for investigating sources of tension when many
factors associated with the downside of the aging process are absent,
including economic dependency, educational disparities, poor health,
cognitive decline, and emotional isolation. The generalizability of the
findings may also be limited by the underrepresentation of ethnic mi-
nority elderly. Thus, sources of difficulties examined in this study are
thought to most closely reflect the experiences of healthy, economically,
and educationally advantaged women in the dominant American
culture.
Procedure
Mothers and daughters were first interviewed separately, were then
given questionnaires to complete on their own, and were finally inter-
viewed together 1-2 weeks later. The interviews lasted approximately 1
hr each. All interviewers were women in their mid-twenties, with at least
a bachelor of arts degree and two years of research experience in the
field of psychology. In addition to sources of tension, interviews and
questionnaires addressed family background, other aspects of conflict,
positive aspects of the relationship, demographic information, and well-
being. I have reported data pertaining to mothers’ and daughters1 rat-
ings of their behaviors during a recent past conflict in a previous article
published in this journal. These data were obtained during the joint
interview, after mothers and daughter had discussed their most recent
tense situation (see Fingerman, 1995). The descriptions of tension pre-
sented here were obtained during the individual and joint interviews;
the ratings of the relationship were included in the questionnaires.
Salience of Relations hip
Information pertaining to the social context of the mother-daughter
relationship was obtained at the beginning of the individual interview.
Pilot testing revealed that older mothers and daughters had a difficult
time ranking the importance of the other in their social network when
asked to do so in a precise manner. In this study, mothers and daughters
were asked to rate the importance of the other using four categories: the
most important person in their life, within the 3 most important, within
the 6 most important, and within the 12 most important people. Partic-
ipants were also asked to name the person with whom they get along
best, in whom they confide most easily, and with whom they are an-
noyed most often.
Sources of Tension
To allow time to build rapport, participants first discussed positive
aspects of their relationship during the individual interview. The first
question about sources of tension came in the middle of the interview.
This question was worded to encourage discussion of discontent, even
in the absence of overt conflict. Participants were asked to “Tell me
about the last time you felt irritated, hurt, or annoyed during a visit
with your daughter/mother.”
In the joint interview, mother and daughter dyads were asked to select
their last tense situation. They were asked to determine the incident that
constituted the last time they had had a disagreement or that one of
them had felt hurt or annoyed by something the other person said or
did. This question focused on more overt conflict than the parallel ques-
tion in the individual interview. The purpose of the joint interview was
to have dyads select events that both mother and daughter had experi-
enced as tense, to examine how individual perceptions differed from
joint experiences of difficulties. Most mother-daughter dyads reached
a consensus on their situation in a matter of 2-5 min, with no dyad
taking more than 10 min. To facilitate mothers’ and daughters’ comfort
with speaking openly during the individual interviews, participants
were assured of their confidentiality in that interview. Thus, sources of
tension described during the individual interviews were only discussed
in the joint interview if participants themselves brought up those issues.
Content Codes
The content of the individual and joint interpersonal tension re-
sponses was coded by two independent coders from audio tapes and
transcriptions taken during each interview. Table 2 contains examples
of content codes from the individual interviews and interrater
agreement for each code, which was established on ratings of 24 ran-
domly selected dyads. The applicability of the content codes for the
individual and joint interviews was established post hoc on the basis
of the theoretical justification posited in the introduction. All content
categories were brought up in at least two mother and daughter in-
terviews. Details of content codes are discussed below. The general cod-
ing procedure was as follows: The theme of each respondent’s individual
interview response was coded first. Responses were coded as including
people in addition to the mother-daughter dyad (e.g., grandchildren,
spouses, lovers, in-laws, friends). Finally, participants’ responses were
coded for spontaneous discussion of the mother’s aging and for inclu-
sion of positive material or praise for the other,
Importance of the relationship. Three codes were included to exam-
ine intergenerational differences in perceptions of the primacy of the
relationship. Discussions describing the other as being obtrusive, mak-
ing critical remarks, and making demands were coded under the con-
densed theme intrusion, on the basis of coders’ inability in many in-
stances to distinguish between these three subcategories. A respondent’s
report that the other did not include her in activities or did not spend
enough time with her was coded as exclusion,
To more fully examine intergenerational differences in perceptions of
the parameters of the relationship, the people included in the responses
to questions about tension were examined. Each response was coded as
being limited to the mother-daughter dyad or focusing on outsiders,
such as husbands, siblings, or children.
Care of self-other. Complaints that the other did not take appropri-
ate care of self or of others or took inappropriate risks were coded as
inappropriate care. In addition, mothers and daughters who described
physical risks the other was taking or allowing others to take were coded
as inappropriate care- The target of the inappropriate care, self or other,
was also coded.
No participant mentioned the mother’s aging as a principal source of
tension. However, many participants mentioned the mother’s age in the
course of their discussion. For example, a daughter might preface her
discussion of what irritates her about her mother with a comment on
her mother’s age, “She’s growing older now, so it’s harder for her to
remember. Sometimes she forgets important things I’ve told her. That
bothers me.” Spontaneous remarks related to the mother’s aging were
coded from the audiotapes.
Habits-traits. Finally, enduring individual attributes such as an-
OLDER MOTHER AND DAUGHTER SOURCES OF TENSION 597
Table 2
Content Codes and Examples
Content code Example
Parameters of the relationship
Intrusion
Exclusion
People discussed
Others included
Dyad only
Vulnerability
Care of self-other
Mother’s aging
Attributes
Habits- traits
Compatibility
Praise of other
Mother: “She sends people into the kitchen to help me.”
Daughter. “She tells me how to discipline my kids.”
Mother: “She has conversations with her father where I feel left out.’1
Daughter: “I came over to visit and she just watched TV.”
Mother: “Her husband kept turning up the radio every time I turned it back down!”
Daughter: “Dinner at mother’s went past the kid’s bedtime. They were overtired.”
Mother: “The way she diets, she obsesses over it. I hate having lunch with her.”
Daughter: “She kept criticizing my driving when we went shopping last week.”
Mother: “She lets her girls go into the city alone. It’s dangerous!”
Daughter: “She won’t use a wheelchair in the airport.”
Mother: “She is well intentioned, but she makes me feel my old age.”
Daughter: “She’s older now. She can’t remember things as well. It’s hard.”
Mother: “She’s too hard on other people: her family, her co-workers.”
Daughter: “She has terrible taste in clothes.”
Mother: “She rarely bothers me, she’s so easy-going.”
Daughter: “She kept talking about people I don’t even know . . . She really is sociable!”
.93
.91
.91
.91
.97
.79
.86
.83
noying behaviors, traits, and bad taste were grouped together under the
theme habits and traits.
Praise. Positive remarks made in response to the questions about
interpersonal tension were coded from the audiotapes. Several mothers
and daughters either prefaced or interrupted their discussions of diffi-
culties with comments about the high quality of their relationship or
positive attributes the other individual possessed.
The content category of each response was coded from the perspective
of the person interviewed. For example, if a mother complained that her
daughter did not watch over the grandchildren enough, that response
was coded as pertaining to care of self or others. If the mother com-
plained that the daughter made unwanted doctor’s appointments for
her (the mother) that situation was coded as intrusion. If a daughter
complained that her mother told her how to clean her house, that re-
sponse was coded as intrusion. If a mother complained that her daugh-
ter was not a good housekeeper, that complaint was coded as a habit or
trait. The category codes were not mutually exclusive. A given response
could fall under more than one category. Every mother and daughter
response was classified under at least one content category. One mother
and 1 daughter, from different dyads, described political issues as
sources of tension; the daughter went on to discuss other things that
bothered her about her mother, and these issues fell under habits and
traits. Given the low incidence rate, political issues were not addressed
further as a cause of tension.
Joint interview scenarios. The joint interview responses were coded
in a manner akin to that used for the individual interviews. There were
some differences in the codes, however, as mothers and daughters were
often more tentative in their discussions of sources of tension in the
joint interview. Rather than discuss intrusiveness, mothers and daugh-
ters tended to refer to unwanted advice that was offered by one or the
other. Situations discussed in the joint interviews also fell under fewer,
larger themes. For example, participants did not mention each other’s
habits or traits as a source of tension during the joint interview and they
did not bring up the mother’s age. Thus, coding of joint interviews was
limited to the following: unsolicited advice, inappropriate care, and in-
clusion of outsiders. One additional level of coding was applied to the
joint interview: The joint interviews were coded with regard to whose
domain the story fell under—the mother’s life, the daughter’s life, or
both-unclear.
Assessment of
Relationship Quality
Positive regard for the relationship was assessed in the questionnaire,
using a modified version of Bengtson’s (1973} Positive Affect Index.
This instrument is comprised of 2 five-item scales assessing perceptions
of feelings for the relationship held by self and by other with regard to
trust, respect, understanding, fairness, and affection (Bengtson &
Schrader, 1982). Responses were rated on a 5-point Liken scale ranging
from 1 (not well) to 5 (very well). The instrument was originally devel-
oped and validated on individuals in three-generation families (N =
1,350) drawn from a list of members of a health plan. Ratings of self
and other can be combined into a single index of perceptions of the
quality of the relationship. Cronbach’s alphas for this measure in the
present study were .90 for mothers and .86 for daughters.
Results
Salience of Other
Table 3 contains information pertaining to the salience of the
mother to the daughter and the daughter to the mother. Where
relevant, McNemar’stest(Conover, 1980) was conducted to ex-
amine intergenerational differences in mothers’ and daughters’
ratings of salience. McNemar’s test is a nonparametric statistic
allowing paired comparisons in a 2 X 2 contingency table. The
test allows calculation of exact p values for instances when fewer
than 30 cases have different values in the matched pair; signifi-
cant findings indicate lack of symmetry in the table.
Mothers and daughters tended to rate the other person as be-
ing important in their lives. Ninety percent of mothers and
daughters ranked the other as being amongst the six most im-
portant people in their lives. However, mothers tended to be
more likely to name the daughter as being the most important
598 FINGERMAN
Table 3
Salience of Mother to Daughter and Daughter to Mother
McNemar’s
test exact
Salience Ratings Mothers Daughters p value
Ranked importance of other
Most important person in life
Within the top 3
Within the top 6
Within the top 10
Who get along with best
Target (mother or daughter)
Who can talk to when upset
Target (mother or daughter)
Who annoyed with most often
Target (mother or daughter)
1 1
25
T
5
23
26
4
4
24
15
5
6
8
15
.0963′
.0005
.0002
.0350
a McNemar’s test calculated using 2 groups: I = top 1 or top 3 most
important, 2 = amongst 6 or 10 most important.
person or amongst the three most important people in their
lives; 75% of mothers indicated the daughter fell amongst the
three most important, compared with 58% of daughters.
There were intergenerational differences in perceptions of the
other person’s emotional role in the relationship. McNemar’s
exact p values were calculated using a binomial code in which
naming the mother or target daughter in response to questions
regarding important social functions was coded as 1 and nam-
ing someone other than that individual was coded as 2. Forty-
seven percent of mothers (n = 23) named the participant
daughter when asked whom they got along with best compared
with only 1 3 % ( « = 6) of daughters. Mothers were also more
likely to name the target daughter when asked whom they spoke
to when upset; 52% (n – 26) of mothers named their daughters,
compared with 17% (n = 8) of daughters naming their mothers.
By contrast, daughters were more likely to cite their mothers as
the person who annoyed them most: 30% ( n = 15) of daughters
cited their mothers as the principal source of annoyance com-
pared with to 9% (n = 4) of mothers.
Point-biserial rs were calculated to examine the association
between size of family and whether the mother and daughter
named the other as preferred confidant or source of irritation.
The mother’s family network seemed to influence her ratings
of the daughter and their relationship. There was a significant
correlation between number of children mothers had and how
important they rated the participant daughters in their lives ( r
= .27, p < .05). Mothers with more children were also more
likely to name a child other than the target daughter as their
preferred confidant. Being widowed was not related to mothers’
ratings of daughters; even married mothers were likely to nomi-
nate a child as a preferred confidant. The size of the daughter’s
network of siblings and her own children seemed to be orthog-
onal to the importance she attributed to her relationship with
her mother.
Content oj Tension in the Individual Interviews
Table 4 shows the proportions of responses from mothers’
and daughters’ individual interviews fitting each content code
and McNemar’s test examining differences in these propor-
tions. McNemar’s tests were calculated by devising two catego-
ries for each code: (a) gave response to which code applies and
(b) did not give response to which code applies.
Response Rates
Although all daughters in this study answered the interper-
sonal tension questions, 8 mothers claimed to be unable to
think of a recent time when they felt upset with their daughters.
It is unclear whether these mothers’ failures to respond to ques-
tions about tense situations in the individual interview repre-
sents an actual lack of perceived difficulties in the relationship,
memory problems, social desirability considerations, or a com-
bination of factors. These mothers will be referred to as “no-
example mothers” in this study, as an indication of their not
providing a response to the question about tension in the indi-
vidual interview, regardless of the underlying reason.
All mothers participated in the joint interview. Thus, dyads
with no-example mothers in the individual interviews were not
excluded from the study; rather, care was taken to conduct anal-
yses of the individual interviews to deal with their “missing
data” conservatively. Analyses involving data from the individ-
ual interviews were conducted twice, once including all moth-
ers, and once excluding no-example mothers and their daugh-
ters. The pattern of results was parallel. The number of mothers
and daughters giving responses included under the category
codes can be found in Table 4. McNemar’s exact p values in this
table reflect more conservative calculations than would result
from using the entire sample: these values were calculated ex-
cluding the eight dyads where the mothers did not provide an
example of difficulties.
Intrusion, Exclusion, and Salience of the Other Person
There were generational differences in the number of mothers
and daughters who described the other’s intrusiveness as a
source of tension in the individual interviews. Nearly half of the
daughters described incidents where their mothers were critical,
demanding, or intrusive. Fewer mothers offered instances of
their daughters’ being intrusive.
Table 4
Numbers of Mothers and Daughters Mentioning Each
Category of Content Coded in Individual Tension
Responses and McNemar’s Test
Content code
Provided no example
Intrusion
Exclusion
Discussed others
Appropriate care
Mother’s aging
Praise of other
Habits-traits
Mother
interview
8
11
7
22
6
7
27
14
Daughter
interview
0
23
5
16
1 1
24
15
13
McNemar’s test
exact/? value3
.0039
.0500
ns
.0301
ns
.0009
.0453
m-
a McNemar’s test was conducted in a conservative manner using only
those mother-daughter dyads in which the mother responded.
OLDER MOTHER AND DAUGHTER SOURCES OF TENSION 599
There were no significant differences in the proportions of
mothers and daughters whose responses were coded as involv-
ing complaints about feeling excluded. Only 7 mothers and 5
daughters described situations in which they felt excluded by
the other.
Mothers were more likely to include other people in the inci-
dents they described in the individual interviews. Mothers’ re-
sponses involved grandchildren, other offspring, sons-in-law,
and their own husbands. More daughters confined their discus-
sions to situations involving themselves and their mothers.
Salience of other and complaints about intrusion. It was
posited that complaints about the parameters of the relation-
ship might stem from a developmental schism. If this were the
case, intergenerational differences in the emotional salience of
the relationship would contribute to mother-daughter tension
over the parameters of the relationship. Mothers’ and daughters’
descriptions of situations involving intrusiveness or exclusion
were examined as a function of their ratings of the salience of
the other by using point-biserial correlations. Dichotomous
codes were derived by examining whether the mother or daugh-
ter named the other in response to different questions about
emotional functions ( 1 = naming the target as the person par-
ticipant gets along with best, 0 = naming other person; 1 -nam-
ing the target as the person participant confides in, 0 = naming
other person; 1 = naming the target as the person participant is
annoyed by most, 0 = naming other person) and whether the
mother or daughter felt intruded upon (1 = yes, 0 = no).
Daughters’ feeling intruded upon was related to mothers’ rat-
ings of the salience of their daughters. Daughters whose mothers
named them as the person they prefer to confide in were more
likely to describe tense situations in which their mothers were
intrusive (r — .37, p < .01). Daughters' emotional investment
in their mothers was not related to whether they felt intruded
upon by their mothers.
Mothers’ descriptions of intrusion were not predicted by
their own ratings of the salience of their daughters.
Salience of other and reports of exclusion. Because only 7
mothers reported feeling excluded, McNemar’s tests were used
to examine the distributions of ratings of salience and the
mother feeling excluded. Dichotomous codes were developed as
described above. Mothers who value their daughters but do not
turn to them for positive emotional functions appear to be more
likely to feel excluded. Mothers who named someone other than
the target daughter as the person they prefer to confide in and
mothers who named someone other than the target daughter
as the person they got along with best were more likely to feel
excluded (McNemar’s exact ps = .0019 and .0033, respec-
tively). Mothers who said their daughters were amongst the top
3 people most important people in their lives were also more
likely to feel excluded than mothers who said the target daughter
was amongst the top 6 or 12 (McNemar’s exact p = .0001).
Daughters who rated their mothers as less important in their
own lives were more likely to have mothers who felt excluded
(McNemar’s exact p = .0005). In addition, daughters who de-
scribed their mothers as intrusive had mothers who were more
likely to describe feelings of exclusion. Of the 7 mothers who
felt excluded, 5 had daughters who reported feeling intruded
upon (McNemar’s exact p = .0007).
Care for self-other. Eleven daughters and 3 mothers de-
scribed situations in which the other individual’s failure to care
for self lay at the root of tension. In addition, 3 mothers de-
scribed situations in which a daughter’s inappropriate care of
her own offspring was the root of difficulties.
Daughters were more likely to cite their mother’s aging in
their responses than were mothers. Nearly half of the daughters
mentioned that their mother was getting older, compared with
only 7 mothers mentioning their own aging. Daughters’ men-
tion of their mothers’ aging was not related to the mothers’ age
or health status, though it was related to their own age ( r =
.24, p < .05), with older daughters more likely to mention their
mothers' age.
Given the small number of mothers who complained about
daughters’ self-care, analyses were not conducted to examine
the age or health of these mothers. The number of and ages of
the daughters’ children were not related to the mother’s express-
ing concern over the daughters’ care of others, although, again,
only 3 mothers described their daughters’ care of offspring as a
principal source of concern.
Habits-traits. There were no significant differences in de-
scribing the other’s habits-traits as sources of tension. Nearly a
third of mothers and daughters cited the other’s attributes as a
source of tension.
Compatibility. The majority of mothers spontaneously
praised their daughters or commented on positive aspects of
their relationship when asked to discuss difficulties. For exam-
ple, 1 mother responded to the question about feeling hurt, irri-
tated, or annoyed with, “She’s so generous, I just wish she’d
save a little more money.” The mothers who gave no example of
tension in the individual interviews often praised their daugh-
ters rather than indicate a time when they were upset with them.
Daughters were less likely to discuss their mothers’ positive
attributes.
Daughters of no-example mothers. To more fully un-
derstand the dyads involving no-example mothers, the descrip-
tions of tension provided by the daughters whose mothers did
not supply a response were examined separately. These daugh-
ters were more likely to describe their mothers’ habits and traits
as a source of annoyance. Six of the 9 daughters who had no-
example mothers described situations involving their mothers’
annoying habits or traits.
Qualitative examples. The distribution of coding of re-
sponses seems to be accounted for by the manner in which
mothers or daughters framed their irritation. The types of issues
described under any given content code might also have fallen
under a different code had it been perceived differently. For ex-
ample, 1 daughter, whose response fell under habit-traits ex-
plained, “My mother has horrible taste in clothes. Sometimes
she brings my girls clothes that are just hideous. We smile and
are gracious, but you know, I just pack them up and send them
to Good Will. Her taste has always been that bad.” This daugh-
ter’s response might have fallen under the intrusion code, had
she framed her complaint differently. For example, the daughter
might have stated instead, “My mother tries to foist her taste in
clothes on my kids. She’s never had taste like mine. Yet, she
insists on bringing my girls clothes she knows they aren’t going
to wear and that I don’t think they should wear.”
In another example, a mother and a daughter both cited
differences in their religious practices as the principal source of
600 FINGERMAN
difficulty in the relationship (the daughter converted to a
different religion when she married). The mother felt excluded
from her daughter’s family life, and the daughter felt impatient
and guilty about her mother’s insistence that the daughter had
converted to another religion in order to hurt her. In 2 different
mother-daughter dyads, the daughters’ conversion to another
religion at marriage was not mentioned as a source of tension,
and 1 mother even stated that she enjoyed not having to fight
with in-laws (who were not Jewish) for her daughter’s attention
during the Jewish holidays.
There were also intergenerational differences in the qualita-
tive types of issues mothers and daughters raised when describ-
ing the other as intrusive. When mothers claimed their daugh-
ters were intrusive, their complaints tended to focus on un-
wanted care, such as “She’s always sending people into the
kitchen to help me.” When daughters complained about their
mothers’ intrusiveness, they tended to focus on excessive de-
mands, criticism, and unsolicited advice.
Content of the Joint Responses
All dyads were able to establish an incident that constituted
their last tense situation during the joint interview. One dyad
insisted on using the debate they had had in responding to the
question about their last tense situation to constitute their last
tense situation. All other dyads selected incidents outside the
context of the study.
Mothers’ and daughters’ relative participation in the joint in-
terview discussion was coded from audiotapes of their conver-
sation and written transcriptions obtained during the in-
terviews by two independent raters. Cohen’s kappas were calcu-
lated on ratings of 21 of the 48 dyads coded to establish
interrater agreement. Chi-square analyses revealed that there
were no significant differences in mothers’ and daughters’ like-
lihoods to instigate discussion (« = .87), choose the situation ( K
= .87), or disagree with something the other brought up during
that conversation ( K = .72). Daughters were more likely to de-
scribe what had happened in the situation in question, after the
incident had been selected, x 2 = ( 1 , N = 48) 12.84, p < .005 (*
= .91). Chi-square analyses also revealed that the pattern of
behavior did not vary as a function of whether the mother had
been responsive during the individual interviews.
In parallel to the results of the individual interviews, sources
of tension cited in the joint interviews tended to revolve around
parameters of the relationship. As can be seen in Table 5, the
majority of responses in the joint interviews focused on unso-
licited advice. Although intrusion was a common source of ir-
ritation discussed in the individual interviews, participants
toned down their complaints in discussing a parallel source of
tension in the other’s presence. Topics of advice ranged from
childrearing to business to health care.
Over half of the mother-daughter pairs included individuals
outside of their dyad in their discussions of interpersonal
tension.
Mothers and daughters tended to discuss issues pertaining to
proper care of self or dependents more frequently during the
joint interview than they had in the individual interviews.
Twenty-one percent of the dyads (n = 10) discussed issues re-
lated to appropriate care during the joint interview, 15% of the
Table 5
Number of Dyads Mentioning Each Category
of Tension Coded From the Joint Interviews
Content code Number of dyads
Unsolicited advice
Mother gives advice
Daughter gives advice
Included others
Inappropriate care
Mother’s care
Daughter’s care
General disagreements
Whose jurisdiction scenario falls under
Mother only
Daughter only
Both-unclear
19
12
28
7
3
11
21
16
dyads ( n = 7) discussed the mother’s failure to care for self, and
6% (n = 3) discussed the daughter’s care for self or others.
Associations Between Sources of Tension
in the Individual and Joint Interviews
and Qualitative Examples
Analyses were conducted to examine relationships between
complaints in the joint interview and the analogous complaint
from the individual interview. McNemar’s tests were conducted
to examine patterns of responses between the individual and
joint interviews. The types of responses mothers and daughters
gave in the individual and joint interviews did not appear to be
related.
When a mother or daughter complained about intrusiveness
during the individual interviews, the joint discussion was not
more likely to revolve around unsolicited advice than when nei-
ther had discussed intrusiveness alone. So few dyads discussed
the daughters’ care for self or other during the joint interview
that the distributions of these dyads were not examined relative
to source of complaint in the individual interviews. A dyad’s
discussing mothers’ risk taking during the joint interviews was
not related to daughters’ individual complaints about mothers’
self care.
In addition, analyses were conducted to examine whether re-
sponse patterns in the individual and joint interviews might re-
veal a lack of open communication within certain dyads. There
appeared to be a dyadic pattern in the individual interviews sug-
gesting less openness over problems. Mothers who could not
think of a last problematic situation were more likely to have
daughters who described their mothers’ traits as problems. Such
mothers and daughters might also be less likely to describe overt
confrontation as a recent source of tension in the relationship
in their joint discussions. McNemar’s tests were conducted to
examine the distribution of these two individual response types
with discussion of a recent confrontation as a source of tension
in the joint interview. The analyses were conducted coding no-
example mothers as /, and mothers who provided an example
as 2, compared with a dyad citing an open confrontation as their
last source of difficulty coded as /, and not having an open con-
frontation coded as 2. A similar analysis was conducted com-
OLDER MOTHER AND DAUGHTER SOURCES OF TENSION 601
paring daughters’ description of their mothers’ habits as a
source of tension to dyads’ discussion of a confrontation. These
tests were not significant.
As was mentioned previously, the overall tone of the joint in-
terview responses tended to be less negative than responses in
the individual interviews. Even when the same basic story came
up in the two interviews, the tone was less negative in the other
person’s presence. For example, in the individual interview, 1
daughter described her mother’s intrusiveness with regard to
her child rearing. She claimed that her mother had suggested
that she withhold ballet lessons from her own little girl as lever-
age to get the little girl to practice the violin.’ The daughter then
proceeded to discuss her mother’s tendency to be pushy in
matters concerning this daughter’s own children and her resent-
ment that her mother felt free to reprimand the daughter’s chil-
dren. In the joint interview, the same issue was presented, only
this time in terms of a disagreement over when children should
make their own decisions and the mother’s offering advice that
did not seem to work well when applied to the daughter’s
children.
In another dyad, mother and daughter alike complained ve-
hemently of situations where they had felt hurt by the other
when answering the question about tension during the individ-
ual interviews. The mother lamented that her daughter pre-
ferred her cat over this mother. The mother explained that she
is allergic to the cat and the daughter would not lock the cat in
the basement when the mother visited. The daughter com-
plained about her mothers’ intrusiveness and insensitivity to the
daughter’s schedule. The daughter gave an example of a time
when the mother came and stayed for 2 hrs, expecting the
daughter to visit with her, although the daughter repeatedly
mentioned that she had an imminent deadline for a project at
work the next day. However, mother and daughter alike hesi-
tated to bring up these incidents when asked to discuss negative
feelings in each other’s presence. During the joint interview,
each one proposed an incident concerning tastes in home dec-
orating that the other claimed not to remember. They finally
settled on a minor dispute over the daughters” house paint as
their last tense incident.
Relationship Quality
Mothers and daughters generally reported having high regard
for the relationship, according to the Bengtson Positive Affect
subscales. On a scale of 5-25, mothers rated their regard for the
relationship,!/=21.58(5/5 = 2.84), and daughters rated their
regard M = 20.52 (SD = 2.82). Although mothers expressed
more positive regard for the relationship than daughters, t(47)
= 2.63, p £ .05, this difference occurred in the context of very
high overall ratings for the relationship.
Relationship Quality and Interpersonal Tension Indices
A series of multiple regressions were calculated to examine
the impact of daughters’ and of mothers’ described sources of
tension on quality of relationship. Dummy variables were cre-
ated in which 1 = describing a given source of tension and 0 =
not describing that source of tension. Quality of relationship was
assessed from the mother’s and the daughter’s point of view.
Table 6
Regressions Predicting Relationship Quality From Mothers’
and Daughters’ Descriptions of Sources of Tension
Description of tension 3 coefficient SE
Mothers’ reported quality of relationship regressed
on mothers’ descriptions of tension”
Daughter as intrusive
Daughter as excluding
Daughters’ care of self
Habits-traits
Constant
.26
-.42
.2!
.02
20.59
1.09
1.15
.23
1.01
2.49
-2.82
-0.24
1.29
0.12
5.89
m
<.OI
ns
ns
fi.Ol
Mothers’ reported quality of relationship regressed
on daughters’ descriptions of tension1*
Mother as intrusive
Mother as excluding
Mothers’ care of self
Habits-traits
Constant
-.44
-.09
-.03
.04
18.51
1.18
1.54
.47
.48
4.18
– 2.14
-0.50
-.23
-0.18
4.42
£.05
ns
ns
ns
<.OOI
Daughters’ reported quality of relationship regressed
on daughters’ descriptions of tension0
Mother as intrusive
Mother as excluding
Mothers’ care of self
Habits-traits
Constant
-.39
.05
-.15
.17
17.21
1.10
1.49
.47
1.16
3.91
-1.98
0.26
-1.02
0.90
4.39
<.05 ns ns ns
=i.ooi
*F(4,42) = 2.72,;) s .05, R2 = .24.
rF(4,42) = 3.09, p ̂ .05, R- = .24.
4, 42) = 2.72,ps.Oi,R2 = .21.
Thus, four sets of regressions were calculated with mothers’ and
with daughters’ reports of relationship quality regressed on
mothers’ and daughters’ reported sources of tension separately.
Table 6 contains results from three of these regressions. The
fourth regression, involving daughters’ reports of the quality
of the relationship regressed on mothers’ described sources of
tension was not significant.
The sources of tension mothers described significantly pre-
dicted mothers’ own reports of relationship quality, F(4,42) =
2.72, p < .05. The degree to which mothers reported feeling
excluded by their daughters was a significant predictor of rela-
tionship quality (/3 = —.42).
Daughters’ descriptions of tension predicted their own and
their mothers’ ratings of their relationship, F(4, 42) = 2.72, p
< .05, and F(4, 42) = 3.09, p < .05, respectively. Daughters'
reports of the mother as intrusive were a significant predictor of
decreased regard for the relationship in both equations (0 =
—.44 for daughters’ ratings of the relationship and /3 = —.39 for
mothers’ ratings of the relationship).
Additional regressions were estimated to examine the inde-
pendent contribution of mothers’ and daughters’ citing the oth-
ers’ attributes as sources of tension on relationship quality.
Daughters’ descriptions of the mothers’ attributes as a source of
tension significantly predicted daughters’ feeling better about
1 Because mothers and daughters who participated in the study might
recognize their joint response, minor details have been changed to pro-
tect mothers’ and daughters’ confidentiality.
602 FINGERMAN
the relationship (0 = . 41 ),/•'( 1,45)= 8.77,p<. 001. and moth- ers' feeling better about the relationship ((3 = . 3 3 ) , F ( 1 , 4 5 ) = 5.33, p < .05. Mothers' descriptions of the daughters' habits significantly predicted mothers' feeling better about the rela- tionship as well (0 = .29), F( 1,44) = 4.07, p <, .05. (Results are not shown here.)
In addition, quality of relationship was regressed separately
on mothers’ and daughters’ citing of the mothers’ aging, praising
the other, and inclusion of others in their discussions. These re-
gressions were not significant.
Finally, a point-biserial correlation was calculated to explore
associations between failure to answer questions in the initial
interview and regard for the relationship, with failure to re-
spond coded as 1 and responding coded as 0. No-example
mothers reported higher quality relationships; declining to pro-
vide a tension response in the individual interview was associ-
ated with mothers’ higher regard for the relationship ( r — .33, p
Discussion
The women in this sample tended to be highly educated,
healthy, and to lead independent lives. Tension in these mother-
daughter relationships did not appear to be an artifact of many
factors associated with parental aging, such as educational de-
privation, financial difficulties, or stress induced from poor
health in the later years of life (Troll & Stapley, 1985; Walker &
Thompson, 1983). Rather, the sample in this study provided a
forum for investigating negative aspects of later life parent-
child relationships, controlling for some of the contextual vari-
ables that have most readily been associated with stress in this
relationship elsewhere. Although the select characteristics of the
sample might have allowed for reduction of tension, mothers
and daughters still described problems in their relationship ei-
ther when interviewed alone or when interviewed with the other
person. There were intergenerational differences in the types of
tense situations and perspectives on those situations that moth-
ers and daughters presented. In addition, the pattern of re-
sponses was distinct in the individual and the joint interviews,
with dyads giving a lower level of negativity in descriptions of
problems in the relationship than had mothers and daughters
when interviewed alone.
The Developmental Schism
The premise that developmental schisms underlie difficulties
in parent-child relationships was partially supported by the
findings in this study. Mothers’ and daughters’ reports of
sources of tension often were related to predicted areas of de-
velopmental differences.
Socioemotional Selectivity Theory
The first area of developmental difference was examined with
regard to socioemotional selectivity theory (Carstensen, 1987,
1 99 1 ) or the salience of the relationship for mothers and daugh-
ters. Sociological interpretations of parent-child relationships
posit that tension between mothers and daughters may reflect
general tendencies of mothers to have a greater investment in
their relationship as a function of the parental role ( Bengtson &
Kuypers, 1971). Findings in the present study are in keeping
with a premise that tension stems not only from the mothers’
role, but from changes in the social meaning of relationships as
mothers age. Mothers and daughters alike appeared to consider
the other person as important in their lives; the majority of
mothers and daughters rated the other person as amongst the
top six most important people in their life. Yet, mothers ap-
peared to give greater positive emotional value to their daugh-
ters than daughters did to mothers. Mothers were more likely to
name their daughters as their preferred confidant or the person
with whom they most enjoy spending time. The greater emo-
tional value mothers placed on their relationships with daugh-
ters is in keeping with expected changes in the emotional sa-
lience of important social relationships in later life (Carstensen,
1992).
Intergenerational differences in reports of tension may stem
from these differences in emotional investment. Daughters were
more likely to find their mothers intrusive, and these complaints
appear to be related to their mothers’ investment in their rela-
tionship. Daughters’ reports of feeling intruded upon were re-
lated to their mothers’ rating them as the person they prefer to
confide in.
Another fundamental difference in the manner in which
mothers and daughters view their relationship appears to bo re-
lated to their conceptions of the parameters of their relation-
ship. Daughters seem to view their own spouses and offspring
as constituting a family unit unto itself, distinct from their rela-
tionships with their mothers. Daughters tended to view the
mother-daughter relationship dyadically, rarely bringing up is-
sues involving their mothers in relationship to their own
spouses, siblings, or children. Mothers more often included
other people in their discussions of difficulties with their daugh-
ters. Thus, older mothers’ investment may lead them to go be-
yond viewing their daughters as discrete individuals. Rather,
mothers may perceive themselves as an integral part of a larger
family, including their daughters, daughters’ spouses, siblings,
and children. As a result, mothers may feel free to offer advice
or to direct affairs in the daughters’ lives in a manner that
daughters experience as intrusion.
Exclusion
Although there were no generational differences in reports of
feeling excluded, for mothers these reports were more closely
related to the differences in mothers’ and daughters’ ratings of
the importance of the relationship. Mothers who reported feel-
ing excluded from their daughters’ lives also appeared to be less
invested in their daughters’ lives; mothers who did not confide
in their daughters or rate them as someone they get along with
best felt more excluded. Yet, 5 of the 7 mothers who felt ex-
cluded claimed their daughter was amongst the three most im-
portant people in their lives. Mothers also seem to report feeling
excluded more often when their daughters value them less.
Mothers were more likely to feel excluded when daughters rated
their mothers as less important or as the person who annoys
them most. It is also possible that when mothers feel excluded
from their daughters’ lives, they protect themselves by not con-
fiding in these daughters and by finding other people, even an-
other child, with whom they get along better. The findings in
OLDER MOTHER AND DAUGHTER SOURCES OF TENSION 603
this study may be spurious (only 7 mothers described situations
in which they felt excluded) or, alternately, these findings may
reflect a mother-daughter typology. The mothers’ sense of ex-
clusion may stem from ongoing difficulties in the relationship
rather than present developmental differences. Of particular
note is the general value the mothers place on the relationship,
though they do not report emotional functions that it serves.
In addition, dyadic processes were suggested by the findings
of this study. Daughters’ reports of feeling that their mother is
intrusive related to the mother’s feeling excluded from the
daughter’s life. The daughter’s experience of tension may, in
turn, have a negative impact on their treatment of their mothers.
As she ages, a mother may value her relationship with her
daughter more than the daughter does. As a result, the mother
may engage in activities the daughter interprets as intrusive, and
the mother may end up feeling excluded by her daughter.
Larger samples with a different selection criteria are needed to
further understand the role of exclusion as a source of tension
in mother-daughter relationships. The findings from this study
reflect generally optimal relationships. In this study, all mothers
rated their daughters as being amongst the 12 most important
people in their lives, and mothers and daughters claimed that
their relationships were generally positive. Studies involving sam-
ples of mothers and daughters with more problematic relation-
ships, such as those who are seeking therapy, may reveal a greater
proportion of mothers who feel excluded from their daughters’
lives and allow greater understanding of the patterns found here.
Although a premise of this article was that differences in the
salience of the relationship are related to changes associated
with socioemotional selectivity theory, the differences in invest-
ment in the relationship might also be attributed to life context
variables. For example, generational differences in investment
might reflect differences in marital status; the mothers were
more likely to be widowed, whereas daughters were more likely
to be married or engaged. Yet, marital status does not fully ac-
count for the mothers’ preference for offspring; mothers who
had husbands did not list their husbands as their preferred con-
fidant. Cohort differences in men’s roles as listeners may also
partially account for generational differences in mothers’ and
daughters’ preferences for one another as confidant. Daughters’
preferences for their husbands as confidants may reflect societal
changes in men and women’s relationships. At the same time,
the pattern of results in this study suggest that differences in
investment, rather than life context, underlie tension mothers
and daughters experience.
Care for Self-Other
The tension in these adult relationships may be distinctive
from that experienced in younger parent and offspring relation-
ships. Daughters appeared to be aware of their mothers’ aging
and also concerned about their mothers’ well-being. As had been
predicted, tension appeared to arise from discrepancies in moth-
ers’ and daughters’ perceptions of the mothers’ needs. Daughters
cited tension related to concerns about their mother’s self care,
including a mother’s refusal to get a flu shot or overexerting her-
self unnecessarily. Daughters in this study were also more likely
to mention their mothers’ aging than were mothers.
Other aspects of the interview process also reveal the daugh-
ters’ concerns for their mothers’ well-being. For example, the
discussion of tension in the joint interview rarely focused on the
mother or something in her life; daughters seemed to seek to
protect their mothers from criticism in such a context.
The premise of mothers and daughters experiencing a “role
reversal” per se in later life has largely been discounted in the
gerontological literature (Brody, 1990; Seltzer, 1990). Rather,
daughters’ concerns for their mothers’ well-being in the present
study may be related to their own present developmental issues.
For example, there was evidence of filial anxiety in which
daughters worry about their own abilities to care for their moth-
ers should their mothers’ health decline (Cicirelli, 1988).
Daughters complained about their mothers’ self-care, even in
the self-defined healthy sample in the present study. As I have
suggested elsewhere, daughters in mid-life may undergo a “role
enhancement” in which they take on solicitude for their moth-
ers’ physical well-being, regardless of the mothers’ actual health
status (Fingerman, 1996).
At the same time, mothers seem to experience their daugh-
ters’ concerns and solicitousness for them as intrusive, suggest-
ing that daughters’ awareness of their mothers’ aging may be
experienced in a negative manner by their mothers, at least
when mothers still define themselves as generally healthy. The
results of the present study suggest that changes incumbent with
the mother’s aging may underlie some difficulties, but that these
difficulties reflect discrepancies in perceptions of mothers’ age-
related needs rather than actual caregiving needs. Moreover, the
experience of tension over the mothers’ aging or health does not
necessarily have a negative impact on the quality of the
relationship.
Only three mothers expressed concern for the daughters’ care
of her own children, a smaller proportion than was originally
anticipated. Although mothers actively included grandchildren
and sons-in-law in the incidents they described as sources of
difficulty with their daughters, they did not necessarily consider
their daughters’ treatment of these significant others as a source
of difficulty.
Habits-Traits
Nearly a third of mothers and daughters described an unde-
sirable attribute as the source of difficulty in the relationship.
In this study, complaints about habits or traits were deemed to
be less intrinsically related to stage of adult development. As
was originally anticipated, reports of habits were associated
with higher ratings of the relationship for daughters. Com-
plaints over habits or traits may reflect the daughter’s ability to
view the mother as an individual, rather than as a member of the
mother-daughter relationship only. Daughters who described
their mothers’ habits as a source of tension may consider aspects
of the mother that they dislike, without regarding those aspects
as a personal assault. Such daughters perceive the problem as
“she is too talkative” rather than “she insists on talking to me
when I have other things to do.”
Dyadic processes pertaining to complaints or habits as
sources of tension are also suggested by the data in this study.
Daughters who described their mothers’ traits as sources of
difficulty were more likely to have mothers who provided no
example of tension in their individual interviews. Mothers who
604 FINGERMAN
were unable to describe a tense situation during their individual
interview reported higher relationship quality than did other
mothers. Although mothers’ failures to provide an example and
higher ratings might both be an artifact of social desirability
constraint, the pattern of results indicates a more complex pat-
tern. Mothers and daughters who perceive problems with the
other person as an aspect of that person rather than an aspect
of the relationship may circumvent the discrepancies in their
relationship stemming from differences in their emotional in-
vestment or concerns about care. It is unclear whether this ap-
proach to understanding problems in the relationship is unique
to mother-daughter relationships in later life or whether it
might be found at other points in time in the parent-child rela-
tionship. Do parents who perceive difficulties with toddlers as
an aspect of the toddler’s temperament and emerging personal-
ity feel more favorable about their relationship? Do teens who
think their parents are “weird” rather than “mean to me” feel
better about their relationships with these parents? Future re-
search might examine this issue at other points in the lifespan.
These types of complaints also appeared to be related to a
less direct communication style in this study. A party’s com-
plaints over the other’s habits or traits as a source of difficulty
appear to be less likely to be raised in overt confrontation in the
relationship. The pattern of communication between mothers
and daughters may be more complex than the portrait pre-
sented here, however. The data presented here suggest that
mothers and daughters who do not discuss experiences of ten-
sion have higher quality relationships. Elsewhere, in findings
from the same study of mothers and daughters, I reported that
daughters who avoid telling their mothers when they are upset
and who have mothers who do not perceive their efforts at avoid-
ance feel worse about the way conflict situations turn out. How-
ever, mothers who engaged in aggressive confrontational styles
and whose daughters perceive their behaviors as such feel worse
about the situation (Fingerman, 1995). Thus, experiencing
sources of tension removed from the relationship or that appear
to be uncommunicated are not necessarily indicative of positive
outcomes. Rather, the congruence between each person’s un-
derstanding of the other’s feelings may also play a role in how
tense incidents are experienced.
Complaints about attributes might be more characteristic of
friendships or professional relationships than in parent-child
relationships. Future research might include examination of
friendships, collegia! or work-related relationships, and mar-
riages with large age and developmental task discrepancies to
investigate whether patterns of tension found in the present
study generalize across relationship types. At the same time, age
differences alone do not account for developmental differences.
Relationships with friends and colleagues tend to center on
shared developmental position as parents of children of compa-
rable ages, junior faculty members in the same department,
equals at golf, or peers on the assembly line, regardless of age.
The parent-child relationship is unique in that individuals
maintain intimacy in the face of developmental discrepancies.
Praise
Although mothers and daughters reported generally strong
positive feelings for the relationship, these feelings were stronger
for the mothers than for the daughters. Mothers praised daugh-
ters while discussing their faults, or failed to discuss a fault at
all. When mothers spoke up during the joint interview, they
seemed to want to protect their daughters from having to do so.
Mothers’ focus on other people when discussing what bothered
them about their daughters may also have been a means of
shielding their daughters from being the sole target of
complaint.
Limitations of the Study
There are several limitations to this study. The predomi-
nantly White composition of the sample limits the generaliz-
ability of this study. The central sources of tension reported
amongst these women reflect dominant themes of their culture,
including dependency versus autonomy, adult women’s role in
the family of origin, and perceptions of changes accompanying
aging. Although the general pattern of developmental differ-
ences might remain the same, descriptions of sources of tension
related to intrusion-exclusion and regard for the relationship
might be different in groups where familial connections are
given different value. Future research might investigate devel-
opmental differences between adults and manifestations of
sources of intergenerational tension in other ethnic groups.
Though the manifestation of content underlying intergenera-
tional tension between women of different cultures may vary,
the central theme may revolve around differences in adult
development.
For example, future research in different cultural subgroups
might reveal a greater proportion of mothers claiming to feel
excluded as a function of differences in level of investment in
the relationship as mothers age. In cultures where a greater
value is placed on parental input throughout the life course,
daughters’ complaints about intrusive mothers might be less
frequent. Rather, mothers’ complaints of exclusion might be
more frequent in cultures where they expect to play a greater
part in their daughters’ lives in adulthood. In such contexts,
mothers’ citing exclusion as a source of difficulty would be
thought to reflect a manifestation of developmental differences
in the salience of the relationship rather than ongoing rifts be-
tween mother and daughter, as was suggested by the data for this
sample.
Cohort differences, as well as developmental differences, may
also account for some of the generational differences in this
study. Women of the older generation may have been more reti-
cent to discuss negative aspects of their lives with an interviewer.
Yet, all analyses were conducted separately for mothers and
daughters, as well as dyadically. There was variation in behavior
within cohorts. Results for mothers and daughters suggest that
issues pertaining to developmental differences have a more neg-
ative impact than those issues related to individual attributes.
Although the women in this study may not be representative
of the population of mothers over the age of 70 years and their
daughters, this sample provided a forum for exploring intergen-
erational tension in the absence of some of the contextual vari-
ables that have been most readily associated with stress in this
relationship in previous research. The focus of the study was on
the contribution of developmental differences to intergenera-
tional tension in later life. One might expect the pattern of re-
OLDER MOTHER AND DAUGHTER SOURCES OF TENSION 605
suits of the present study to be even more evident in a sample
with less healthy older mothers and a greater developmental gap
between generations.
This study poses questions about the nature of future devel-
opment in mother-daughter relationships. Do sources of ten-
sion shift again as the mother’s health declines? How do mothers
and daughters evolve from the types of relationships described
in this study to those marked by caregiver stress described else-
where (Brody 1985, 1990; Litvin, 1992)? Do daughters who
complain about their mothers’ habits while the mothers are
healthy assume the role of caregiver more readily than those
who are upset about their mothers’ intrusiveness? Do they be-
come different types of caregivers? The answers to these ques-
tions may best be answered in the context of longitudinal
research.
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Received February 27, 1995
Revision received February 12, 1996
Accepted February 12, 1996 •