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Young Women's Anger in Romantic Relationships PDF

147 Pages·2013·1.05 MB·English
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Young Women’s Anger in Romantic Relationships Ana Lucia Jaramillo Sierra Dissertation submitted to the faculty of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy In Human Development Katherine R. Allen Megan Dolbin-McNab Mariana Falconier Christine Kaestle August 29, 2013 Blacksburg, Virginia Keywords: women’s anger, romantic relationships, gender, emerging adulthood Young Women’s Anger in Romantic Relationships Ana Lucia Jaramillo Sierra Abstract The present study investigated how young women “do” and “undo” gender in relation to their anger in romantic relationships. With this aim, I conducted in-depth interviews with 24 young women between the ages of 18 and 25. I interviewed participants about the characteristics of their current romantic relationships and their experiences of anger in this context. I used a constructivist grounded theory methodology involving open, axial, and theoretical coding to analyze the data collected through the interviews (Charmaz, 2006). My analysis suggested an emerging theory of young women’s anger in romantic relationships involving 5 categories, 16 sub-categories, and 4 types. Overall, the findings suggest young women experience contradictions about their power in romantic relationships and variability across events in how they “do” and “undo” gender in relation to their anger in romantic relationships. The findings also confirm that for most young women, their power in romantic relationships is associated with how women relate to, understand and express their anger. The emerging theory of women’s anger in romantic relationships provides a tool for further research on anger in the context of romantic relationships and a set of guidelines for clinicians to assess young women’s anger in romantic relationships. Table of Contents Table of Contents ........................................................................................................................... iii List of Tables ...................................................................................................................................v Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................ vi Dedication ................................................................................................................................... vii Chapter 1: Introduction ....................................................................................................................1 Statement of the Problem .....................................................................................................1 Purpose of the Study ............................................................................................................3 Core Concepts ......................................................................................................................3 Overview of the Proposed Study..........................................................................................6 Research Question ................................................................................................................7 Chapter 2: Literature Review ...........................................................................................................8 Theoretical Framework ........................................................................................................8 Women and Anger .............................................................................................................10 Anger in Couple Relationships ..........................................................................................17 Anger in Emerging Adulthood ..........................................................................................24 The Gap ..............................................................................................................................26 Chapter 3: Method ........................................................................................................................28 Overview of the Research Design ......................................................................................28 Description of the Sample ..................................................................................................28 Sample Selection Process ...................................................................................................30 Data Collection Procedures ................................................................................................33 Description of Instrumentation ..........................................................................................36 Data Analysis Process ........................................................................................................37 Chapter 4: Findings .......................................................................................................................47 Young Women’s Power in Romantic Relationships ..........................................................47 Women’s Relation to Their Anger in Romantic Relationships .........................................65 Triggers for Women’s Anger in Romantic Relationships..................................................68 Women’s Meaning Making of Their Anger in Romantic Relationships ..........................76 iii Women’s Anger Expression in Romantic Relationships ..................................................81 Women Undoing, Doing, and Struggling with Gender ....................................................85 Chapter 5: Discussion ...................................................................................................................94 Power: Contradictions and Resistance ...............................................................................94 Anger: Variability within Participants and Non-Gendered Alternatives ...........................97 An Emerging Theory of Young Women’s Anger in Romantic Relationships ................101 Limitations of the Study ..................................................................................................105 Clinical Implications ........................................................................................................106 Future Research Directions .............................................................................................112 Conclusion .......................................................................................................................113 References ....................................................................................................................................114 Appendix A: Recruitment Flyer and Recruitment Email ...........................................................126 Appendix B: Phone Conversation with Potential Participants Protocol .....................................128 Appendix C: Informed Consent ..................................................................................................130 Appendix D: Post-Interview Demographic Questionnaire .........................................................132 Appendix E: Interview Guide .....................................................................................................134 Appendix F: Coding Scheme I ....................................................................................................137 Appendix G: Coding Scheme II ..................................................................................................139 Appendix H: Coding Scheme III ................................................................................................140 iv List of Tables Number Page Table 1: Final Coding Scheme………………………………………………………………….41 Table 2: Emerging Theory of Young Women’s Anger in Romantic Relationships………….....44 Table 3: Sub-categories for Young Women’s Power in Romantic Relationships……………...48 v Acknowledgements I want to thank my dissertation chair and advisor, Dr. Katherine R. Allen, for her emotional and intellectual support and her mentoring through the doctoral program and the planning, development, and completion of this dissertation. Katherine provided positive feedback and challenged my ideas to think beyond my limits. Katherine set an example for me on working through difficult times and giving the best of me at all moments. I want to thank Dr. Christine Kaestle for her support and inspiration during the development of this dissertation, especially during her time as my dissertation chair and co-chair. Christine interested me in development during adolescence and emerging adulthood. I want to thank Dr. Megan Dolbin-McNab and Dr. Mariana Falconier for their useful feedback in the development of this dissertation and their suggestions for future publication. Megan and Mariana cared for me as a person, therapist, and scholar and provided significant help when I needed it. I want to thank my parents and my sisters for their support through my doctoral studies. vi Dedication To Mauricio. vii Running head: YOUNG WOMEN’S ANGER IN ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIPS 1 Chapter 1: Introduction Statement of the Problem In the last decade, gender theorists have argued for a greater emphasis on “undoing gender” through critical feminist scholarship (Deutsh, 2007; Lorber, 2005; Risman, 2004, 2009). A shift from “doing gender” to “undoing gender” means focusing less on the ways in which gender is socially constructed and maintained, and focusing more on the processes by which individuals become less gendered or reflexively adopt alternative gender rules to resist those naturalized through social institutions and culture (Risman, 2004). Focusing on “undoing gender” does not deny the predominance of gender as it continues to structure women and men as different and unequal, but recognizes the accomplishments made by feminist scholars and activists in creating progress towards greater gender equality (Deutsh, 2007; Risman, 2009). The present research study fits this feminist interest of “undoing gender.” From a family therapy perspective, “undoing gender” implies: (a) through research, understanding the processes by which gender is both constructed and resisted in couple and family relationships, and (b) in practice, promoting reflections on such gender construction and deconstruction processes in therapy, supervision, and teaching. In particular, the goal of the present study was to understand two processes: (a) How does gender influence young women’s anger in romantic relationships? and (b) How do young women resist and transform gender as they relate to their anger in romantic relationships? Studying the ways in which young women experience, express and make meaning of anger in romantic relationships is relevant from a public health perspective, as women’s experiences and expressions of anger have implications for women’s physical and emotional health. Women who suppress or neglect their anger have greater probabilities of developing Running head: YOUNG WOMEN’S ANGER IN ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIPS 2 health problems such as cancer and high blood pressure (Harburg, Julius, Kaciroti, Gleiberman, & Schork, 2003; Thomas, Groer, Davis, Droppleman, Mozingo, & Pierce, 2000), and psychological problems such as depression and suicide attempts (Daniel, Goldston, Erkalin, Franklin, & Mayfield, 2009; Sperberg, & Stabb, 1998). Furthermore, women who suppress or neglect their anger have greater probabilities of getting involved in indirect aggression toward intimate partners (Johnson & Leone, 2005). To date, most studies have examined women’s anger in general terms. Only a few studies have considered women’s anger in the context of the couple relationship. For example, Sperberg and Stabb (1998) showed that women’s expression of anger varied according to level of mutuality in their adult couple relationships (marriages and cohabitating couples). In this study, women with less mutual couple relationships showed greater anger suppression and indirect expression of anger. Similarly, Fischer and Evers (2011) found an association between egalitarianism in couples and women’s expression of anger. In their sample, women in less egalitarian relationships had greater levels of anger suppression. Although these findings have been important in establishing a link between power relations in couples and women’s anger, more research is needed in order to strengthen the evidence on the association of these factors. Furthermore, studies of women’s anger in the developmental context of emerging adulthood are uncommon. Studies have either focused on girls’ anger in adolescence (for example, Brown, 1998) or have used heterogeneous adult samples (for example, Sperberg & Stabb, 1998) where issues of development cannot be considered. However, the study of women’s anger in couple relationships is especially significant in the stage of emerging adulthood. Considering emerging adulthood is a formative stage where relationship explorations become more serious, deep, and intimate in preparation for adult committed couple relationships Running head: YOUNG WOMEN’S ANGER IN ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIPS 3 and family life (Arnett, 2004; Tanner, 2006), there are important opportunities to intervene in transforming processes related to the couple, and to the self. Purpose of the Study The present study expands previous knowledge on women’s anger by examining the specifics of women’s anger in the relational context of the couple and the developmental context of emerging adulthood. The findings of this study provide an additional understanding of how women’s anger in romantic relationship are both influenced by gender, and how women resist and transform gender as they relate to anger in their romantic relationships. As a result, these findings can help couple and family therapists, and other professionals working with young couples, in promoting both an inter- and intra-personal space where women can become aware of how social constructions of gender limit their anger in romantic relationships. Through these reflections, therapists can mobilize alternative ways young women can relate to their anger. At the same time, understanding how young women resist and transform gender through their own ways of expressing, experiencing and meaning-making of anger can help therapists identify, strengthen, and reinforce these alternatives. Core Concepts In the following pages I introduce the definition of the core concepts used in this study: anger, gender, and romantic relationship. I provide a definition of each core concept and clarify which theoretical framework or author the definition comes from. Anger I used a psychological definition of anger as an emotion associated with specific physiological experiences, cognitions, and behavioral expressions. According to this definition anger experience is associated with (a) “increased blood pressure, total peripheral resistance, and

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Ana Lucia Jaramillo Sierra. Abstract. The present study investigated how young women “do” and “undo” gender in relation to their anger in romantic
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