aining a standard of living, developing adult leisure activities, relating to one's spouse as a person, and accept physical evidences of aging (Havighurst, 1952). In Erick sonian terms, a 31-year-old is likely to be in the Gener ativity vs. Stagnation stage, in which the focus is on the successful rearing of children or otherwise making a lasting contribution to the world (Santrock, 1983).
These generalized issues and foci of experience can clearly be seen in Bill's case. As noted earlier, he is undergoing job dissatisfaction and is questioning the validity of spending his life doing something he dislikes. This indicates that he is actively struggling with the problem of generativity vs. stagna tion, and with many of the key developmental experiences desc ribed by Gould, (1978) and Havighurst, (1952).
Bill is also experiencing stress at home, both with his wife and his child. He feels that, in the traditional male role of breadwinner, he must always be strong and stoic. Thus, he is unwilling to share his frustrations and fears with his wife. Similarly, because he earns all of the money in the family and holds most of the power, his wife feels less able to approach him and offer help: she may also be fearful of finding out just how unhappy he is.
Vicki and Bill have less in common now than ever before, and their conversations have shifted from topics of general interest to talking almost exclusively about their child. Santrock (1983) maintains that this type of lifestyle divergence between husband and wife, increasing inequality of power, and limitation of interaction is a depressingly widespread phenomenon. Due to the presence of Jamie, Bill and Vicki have relatively little time alone and they are, at seven years of marriage, trying to make the transition from youthful love to mature love, which revolves around mutuality, intimacy, and companionship instead od romance or passion (Levinger, 1974).
Last but not least, ...