Conjugality in the Different Stages of the Family Vital Cycle

Abstract

The conjugality is a dynamic phenomenon that changes over the life cycle. In this study, we aimed to compare how love, marital quality and adjustment are expressed in the different stages of the vital evolutionary cycle, in 372 people, of both sexes, residing in the Rio Grande do Sul. As instruments, we use GRIMS, DAS and ETAS. We verified in families with young children (age from 0 to 11) the worst results in the investigated constructs and in the families with teenager children (age from 12 to 21) the best results. The data corroborate the literature, which discusses that the relationship time generates variations in the perception of marital satisfaction, as well as the finding that the demands of the children, especially small ones, impact the marital construction. These findings point to the need for systemic approach preventive work, in order to make families more adept at dealing with their developmental crises.