The Psychology of Women [antikvár]

P r ef a c e I prepared the Fourth Edition of The Psychology of Women in 1999, the last year of the 20th century. The current study of the psychology of women was born in the late 1960s, developed in its youth and adolescence during the 1970s and 1980s, and is thriving in its adulthood as we cross into the 21st century. Hunclreds of professors throughout North America are currently teaching college courses about the psychology of women or the psychology of gender. Increasing numbers of students are selecting these courses because of their personal or academic interest in this endlessly fascinating subject. Research in the psychology of women continues to be energetic and diverse. Topics rangé from prenatal influences to adolescent friendship patterns, and to the life satisfaction of women of all ages. When this textbook was first published in 1987, the research on many aspects of women's lives was scanty at best. Publications that were available did not always feature women's own perspectives. Little information about women of color could be found, and cross-cultural studies were virtually nonexistent. In contrast, it's now a unique challenge to keep up with the hundreds of books and thousands of articles published on this subject each year. The Psychology of Women (Fourth Edition) provides a synthesis of information that can guide readers through important facets of women's lives. I have made a special effort to include significant topics that are omitted or abbreviated in most other textbooks: the development of gender-typing, women and work, love relationships, pregnancy and motherhood, women with disabilities, and later adulthood. The resources cited represent only a fraction of the literature I examined in preparing the sequence and coverage of the subjects. In the first edition of this textbook, I commented that the meager information on the psychology of women made writers reluctant to tackle a textbook in this area. The explosion of research in the past decade has made the task rewarding, but challenging from a different perspective. As this project progressed, I often asked myself, "How can I possibly cover all these dimensions of women's lives without creating a textbook of encyclopedic proportions?" Text Features and Organization The Fourth Edition of The Psychology of Women combines both developmental and topicai approaches. An introductory chapter presents somé generál concepts and several important cautions about research methods and biases. The stereotypes that help shape gender-related expectations and behavior are then addressed. The next two chapters explore female development, from prenatal experiences and infancy, through childhood and adolescence. The next nine topicai chapters examine components of women's lives, such as gender comparisons, work experiences, love relationships, sexuality, childbirth, physical and psychological health, and violence against women. Young adults vii