Chapter 8
condition with psychological,
interpersonal,social,and spiritual
dimensions.Whether this condition truly
can be called menopause is to be
determined by ongoing studies.However,
we know for certain that hormonal and
chemical changes do take place in both
men and women during the middle years
as a natural part of the aging process
(Mayo Clinic Staff,2007).
Parent-Child Relationships in the
Middle Years
Parent-child relationships change
across the adult lifespan as both children
and adults age.What in one stage may be
rocky and full of conflict can become
peaceful and supportive in another stage.
For our purposes here,we will refer to two
phases: theearly-middle-years family,
which is characterized by the presence of
adolescents in the home; and thelater-
middle-years family,also known as the
empty-nest family.
The parents’sense of well-being
during the childrearing years is often
associated with the success of their
children.To summarize briefly,the early
parenting years are marked by a parent-
child power gradient,in which the power
rests clearly with the parents.The parents’
goal is to help their children become
independent.As children near school age,
they become less dependent on their
parents to meet all of their needs.
However,the parent-child power gradient
still favors the adult.
As children enter school,the parent-
child relationship begins to change: peer
influences increase and parental influences
decrease.Parents,at this time,often feel
they have little or no influence on their
children.While it may seem this way to
the parents,children are still listening and
want to please their parents.
Early-Middle-Years Family Dynamics.
Duringthemiddleyearsof family
development,theparent-childpower
gradient beginstoshift.Familieswith
adolescentsmust negotiatenew
boundariesasadolescentsmovebeyond
theconfinesof family life.Thisismore
difficult in present-day familiesduetothe
lack of ritualsmarkingthisperiodof
development,andthelack of community
supportswhich couldprovidestructurefor
adolescents(Carter &McGoldrick,2005).Middle years parents not only deal with their adolescent’s
struggle for identity, but often are involved in their own
midlife identity crises.ImagefromBigstockPhoto.com/MaszaS