The effect of outside work on the menopausal woman.

1,148 women between the ages of 45 and 54 from five different ethnic groups in Israel, representing a traditional-modern continuum were investigated with regard to the relationship of their menopausal symptomatology with their work situations now and what they were when the women were aged 40. A relatively low symptomatology was found among European Jews, North African Jews and Arabs in the peri- or postmenopause where their work load was unchanged or somewhat more than before. On the other hand, the Persian Jews showed a remarkable contrast, namely: those who had never worked at all outside the home suffered less than all the others in all the stages of menopause. These results cannot be explained only by the socioeconomic differences between the five groups, as the North Africans and Persians both belong to the lower urban socioeconomic class and the Arabs to the low rural socioeconomic class, with the Europeans belonging to the middle urban class. Nor can the results be explained merely by the difference in modernity and traditionalism. The matter is more complicated, and additional factors such as physical health, marital relationships and general stability are almost certainly involved. The advice to "go out and work" which is so often given by medical practitioners to menopausal women is thus not always correct, and should not be given automatically.

Maternal behavior and perceived sex of infant.

Eleven mothers interacted with one six-month-old male infant, dresses either as a male or female. Differences were found in overall maternal stimulation and toy handling as a function of perceived sex of the baby. Mothers interviewed reported that treatment of their own infants was not differentiated by sex. Results indicate that mothers behave according to their expectations rather than infant cues, although unaware of their stereotyping.

The Oedipus Cycle: developmental mythology, Greek tragedy, and the sociology of knowledge.

The Oedipus complex of Freud is based on the inevitability of the tragic fate of a man who fled his home to escape the prophecy of parricide. Thus, he fulfilled it by killing a stranger who proved to be his father. As Freud does, this consideration of the tragedy of Oedipus takes as its point of departure the inevitability of the confrontation between father and son. Where Freud looks to the son, however, I look to the father, who set the tragedy in motion by attempting to murder his infant son. Themes ignored in developmental theory but axiomatic in gerontology are considered in this study of the elder Oedipus. The study begins by noting that Oedipus ascended the throne of Thebes not by parricide but by answering the riddle of the Sphynx and affirming the continuity of the life cycle which his father denied. In the second tragedy of the Oedipus Cycle of Sophocles, Oedipus at Colonus, this affirmation is maintained. As Oedipus the elder accepts the infirmities of old age and the support of his daughter Antigone, Oedipus the king proves powerful up to the very end of his life when he gives his blessing not to the sons who had exiled him from Thebes, but to King Theseus who shelters him in his old age. Thus, the Oedipus cycle, in contrast to the "Oedipus complex," represents not the unconscious passions of the small boy, but rather the awareness of the life cycle in the larger context of the succession of the generations and their mutual interdependence. These themes are illuminated by a fuller consideration of the tragedy of Oedipus.

Corpses, lepers, and menstruating women: tradition, transition, and the sociology of knowledge.

A study of 1148 middle-aged women in 5 Israeli subcultures ranging from modern Central European immigrants to traditional Moslem Arab villagers is the point of departure for this essay on tradition, transition, and the sociology of knowledge. The study is shown as having evolved through the competing hypotheses of the investigators, which in turn reflect the biases born of the experiential framework: 2 men and 1 young woman design a study that assumes an overvaluation of fertility and childbearing. When the findings reveal that middle-aged women do not regret the loss of fertility, regardless of tradition or modernity (and thus of childbearing history), the investigators discover their own assumptions to be erroneous. Further, the meaning of modernity is reconsidered as tradition is shown to incorporate a recognition of the strength of women despite formal status subordination; it is proposed that the dilemma of middle age is inevitably cultural transition. Finally, it is suggested that the broader social context of which the investigators were a part legitimates the study of women as "other" and as objects, while denying opportunity to study men in the same framework--a social context in which men shape decisions that grant or deny research funds, and thus shape the evolution of knowledge of gender.

An observational study of affective and assertive family interactions during adolescence.

The purpose of this study was to describe the role of affective and assertive interactions in familial adaptation to adolescent pubertal development. Twenty-five family triads consisting of the adolescent and parents were asked to engage in an Unrevealed Differences task. This interaction was audiorecorded, and statements were coded as affective or assertive using a modified version of Bales's ([1970) Personality and Interpersonal Behavior, Holt, Rhinehart and Winston, Inc., New York) Interaction Process Analysis. Family relationships appear redefined during transpuberty, a time when physical changes associated with the onset of puberty are at apeak. This redefinition of transpubertal family relations is characterized by a decline in the use of affective statements coupled with an increase in the use of assertive statements relative to prepubertal and postpubertal families. Differences in mother-adolescent and father-adolescent interactions also are discussed.

Ethnicity and adaptation to climacterium.

An investigation was made into the menopausal symptoms and attitudes of 1,148 Israeli women of five different ethnic origins. The results show that, while some of the somatic menopausal symptoms are independent of ethnic origin, psychic and psychosomatic symptoms are more closely associated with this variable. Similarly, the general health of menopausal women also varies with cultural origin. This variation is shown to correlate with the psychic and psychosomatic symptomatology of the climacterium. This study underlines the necessity of a multi-factorial, biological, sociological, psychological and anthropological approach to problems of menopause.

The perception of menopause in five ethnic groups in Israel.

An investigation was made into the menopausal symptoms and attitudes of 1, 148 Israeli women of five different ethnic origins. The results show that, while some of the somatic menopausal symptoms are independent of ethnic origin, psychic and psychosomatic symptoms are more closely associated with this variable. Similarly, attitudes to the climacteric vary across cultural origins, especially with regard to husband-wife relationships. This study underlines the necessity of a multi-factorial, biological, sociological, psychological and anthropological approach to problems of menopause.