Psychology 409b January 24, 2006

Psychology 409b January 24, 2006

First Outline of Assigned Readings

By Andrea Montague

Dr. Laura C. Schlessinger, The Proper Care and Feeding of Husbands, Harper Collins Publishers 2004, pages 15-26

            Instructions for this activity are found at:
            www.soc.hawaii.edu/leonj/leonj/leonpsy24/g24-oral1.htm
            Instructor: Dr. Leon James

1) Neglect

A. Dr. Laura believes that many women are unknowingly neglecting their husbands because they are too busy focusing on other important things in their lives, such as work and friends.

B. In fact, some women actually express disapproval or anger toward their husbands, who wish to spend more time with them. Instead of appreciating the fact that their husbands are still wanting to spend time with them, they view it as a form of control.

C. This is in part due to the feminist movement which brought about notions of success and power as being more important than taking care of one’s family.

2) Prioritizing

A. It is pointed out by Dr. Laura that many men feel that their wives do not consider them to be a priority. The source of this problem is thought to be the busy and hectic lives the women lead.

B. While many women believe that they are too tired and stressed out to take good care of their husbands or do something special for them, Dr. Laura believes that on the contrary, doing just that will actually lead to decreased stress and a peaceful relationship with their husbands.

C. Prioritizing becomes a necessity if one is to deal with this problem. It is important to put your husband at the top of your list so that you don’t spend all of your time doing things outside of your relationship.

3) “Hurried Woman Syndrome”

A. Working mothers are sometimes so busy that they exhibit signs of the “Hurried Woman Syndrome”. This is characterize by depression, as well as a decrease in sex drive. Women who try to accomplish everything and become overburdened experience this syndrome.

B. Societal pressures are a large part of what contributes to a women’s desire to have and accomplish everything form jobs and housework to taking care of the children. A woman is often thought of as being “lazy” by the women around them, if she were to quit her job and focus on taking care of her family.

4) What I think

A. I think Dr. Laura suggests that women are not doing a good job taking care of their husbands. She almost makes all women sound like lazy and selfish people who only think about what they want and how to achieve their happiness.

B. On the contrary, I believe that women do, even though maybe not all, try to make their husbands happy.

C. There shouldn’t be blame, but careful examination of the problem if the wife, or husband, feels there is something wrong.