Syllabus:
SINGLES
IN SOCIETY
Instructor:
Bella M. DePaulo
Fall,
1999
This is a course for graduate
students and especially talented advanced undergraduates.
It is a unique course, possibly the first of its type
ever taught. In this course, it will be important to
be able to set aside cultural stereotypes and perceptions
of singles, and think about this topic in fresh, new
ways.
ASSIGNMENTS
(in
addition to weekly readings and class participation)
DUE EVERY MON at NOON.
Write a brief paper (about one page) about the readings
for that week. The paper should include (1) a very
brief summary of each reading (these could even be as
brief as one or two sentences) and (2) a comment about
the topic for that week. The comment could be a suggestion
for research, an idea about a link to another area,
a reaction to the point of view represented in the readings,
or almost any other comment that goes beyond merely
summarizing the readings. These papers are due on Sept
13, Sept 20, Sept 27, Oct 4, Oct 11, Oct 25, Nov 1,
Nov 8, Nov 29, and Dec 6. 2 points each
DUE MON OCT 18 at NOON.
Write a brief description (about a page or two) of your
plans for your final project (see below).
DUE TUES OCT 19 in class.
(1) Give a 2-3 minute presentation of your plans for
your final project (see below). (2) Give a 5 minute
presentation about one of the designated books (Anderson
& Stewart; Clements; Gordon; Reilly; or Simon).
Describe what you regard as some of the most important
points in the book. Did you learn anything that was
surprising? Did the book suggest any topics for research
or social action? 5 points
DUE TUES NOV 9 in class.
Sometime before this class, go out to lunch or dinner
by yourself. Fast food restaurants or the like (e.g.,
Bodo’s) do not count. Describe this experience
in class. For example, what would have made this experience
easier or more difficult for you? While you are doing
your field work, look around and record the number of
people at the other tables as well as other relevant
information (e.g., sex, age, whether they are wearing
wedding rings). 5 points
DUE MON DEC 6 at NOON,
SINGLES COLLECTION. Although this is not
due until Dec 6, it is something you should “work”
on all semester. Your singles collection could include
almost anything interesting or revealing about singles.
This should be a lot of fun. Here are just a few examples
of the kinds of items that might be included in your
collection. (1) Passages from novels that indicate
something interesting about how singles are portrayed
or perceived. (2) Ads for club memberships, travel packages,
or anything else indicating different prices for singles
than for couples. (3) Quotes from newspapers, magazines,
public figures, etc., indicating attitudes toward singles
(e.g., “family values”). (4) Suggestions
for alternatives terminologies (e.g., “always single”
instead of “never married;” “civil status”
instead of “marital status.” (5) Notes about
inappropriate or revealing comments made about singles.
(6) Notes about revealing words or phrases used in conversations
with singles. (7) Newspaper or magazine stories on
topics relevant to singles. (8) Lists of famous singles.
10 points
DUE MON DEC 13 at NOON,
FINAL PROJECT. The final project can be
anything you want it to be, as long as it represents
a serious and sustained effort to study something important
about singles. There are many possibilities. Here
are just a few. (1) Design a study, collect the data,
and report the results. (2) Propose a series of studies.
(3) Write a literature review. (4) Write a theoretical
paper. (5) Review texts on the family (or family journals,
or relationship journals) and record the coverage of
singles in each. (6) Write the section on singles that
should be included in a textbook on the family. (7)
Do a content analysis of the portrayal of singles in
select novels. (8) Systematically analyze the portrayal
of singles in the media (e.g., select magazines, particular
kinds of TV shows). (9) Describe plans for the first
international conference on singles. If you choose
a project such as a literature review, a theoretical
paper, or an empirical study, aim for a publishable
final product. 50 points
GRADING
Points
10 Class participation
20 Weekly summaries and comments
(10 x 2 points per paper)
5 Class presentation about singles
book
5 Report on restaurant experience
10 Singles collection
50 Final project
_____
100
BOOKS
(available
at UVA bookstore)
Faludi, S. (1991). Backlash:
The undeclared war against American women. NY:
Crown.
[more than
50 pages are assigned; buy this one]
Bennett, J.M., & Froide,
A.M. (Eds.) (1999). Singlewomen in the European
past, 1250-1800. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania
Press.
[only 1 chapter
assigned; buy it if you are esp interested in historical
issues]
Schwartzberg, N., Berliner,
K., & Jacob, D. (1995). Single in a married
world: A life cycle framework for working with the unmarried
adult. NY: Norton.
[4 of 16 chapters
are assigned; buy if interested]
Vicinus, M. (1985). Independent
women: Work and community for single women, 1850-1920.
Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
[1 required
and 1 rec’d chapter; buy if interested]
BUY ONE (1) OF THE FOLLOWING (for the week of Oct 19)
Anderson, C.M., & Stewart,
S. (1994). Flying solo: Single women in midlife.
NY: Norton.
Clements, M. (1998). The
improvised woman: Single women reinventing single life.
NY: Norton.
Gordon, T. (1994). Single
women: On the margins? Washington Square, NY: New
York University Press.
Reilly, L. (1996). Women
living single: Thirty women share their stories of navigating
through a married world. Boston, MA: Faber and
Faber.
Simon, B.L. (1987). Never
married women. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University
Press.
WEEKLY READINGS
SEPT 7: Introduction
SEPT 14: Practicing Skepticism
Stein, P. J. (1983). Singlehood.
In E. D. Macklin & R. H. Rubin (Eds.), Contemporary
families and alternative lifestyles: Handbook on research
and theory (pp. 27-47). Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.
Faludi, S. (1991). Backlash:
The undeclared war against American women. NY:
Crown.
Myths, pp. 3-4
Statistics, pp.
3-35 [rec]
Depression and
burnout, pp. 35-41
Sorrow and pity,
pp. 95-104
TV, pp. 156-168
Politics, pp.
270-277 [rec]
Brain trust, pp.
281-290
Pop psychology,
pp. 335-342
Media, pp. 370-378
SEPT 21: Overviews
Keith, P. M. (1980). Two
models of singleness: Managing an atypical marital status.
International Journal of Sociology of the Family,
10, 301-310.
Davis, A. G., & Strong,
P. M. (1977). Working without a net: The bachelor as
a social problem. Sociological Review, 25, 109-129.
Lewis, K. G. (1994). Single
heterosexual women through the life cycle. In M. P.
Mirkin (Ed.), Women in context: Toward a feminist
reconstruction of psychotherapy (pp. 170-187).
NY: Guilford.
Norton, A. J., & Glick,
P. C. (1981). Marital instability in America: past,
present, and future. In P. J. Stein (Ed.), Single
life: Unmarried adults in social context (pp. 57-69).
NY: St. Martin’s Press.
Darling, J. (1981). Late-marrying
bachelors. In P. J. Stein (Ed.), Single life: Unmarried
adults in social context (pp. 34-40). NY: St. Martin’s
Press. [rec]
SEPT 28: History of Singles
Watkins, S. C. (1984). Spinsters.
Journal of Family History, 9, 310-325.
Chambers-Schiller, L. (1978).
The single woman reformer: Conflicts between family
and vocation, 1830-1860. Frontiers, 3, 41-48.
Chambers-Schiller, L. V. (1984).
Liberty, a better husband. Single women in America:
The generations of 1780-1840. New Haven, CT: Yale
University Press.
Introduction,
pp. 1-9. [rec]
Chapter 1, “The
cult of single blessedness,” pp. 10-28.
Conclusion, pp.
205-214. [rec]
Vicinus, M. (1985). Independent
women: Work and community for single women, 1850-1920.
Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Introduction,
pp. 1-9.
Chapter 1, “Revolt
against redundancy,” pp. 10-45. [rec]
Bennett, J.M.,
& Froide, A.M. (Eds.) (1999). Singlewomen in
the European past, 1250-1800. Philadelphia: University
of Pennsylvania Press.
Chapter 1, “A
singular past,” pp. 1-37.
OCT 5: Social Interactions
and Social Networks
Johnson, M. P. , & Leslie,
L. (1982). Couple involvement and network structure:
A test of the dyadic withdrawal hypothesis. Social
Psychology Quarterly, 45, 34-43.
Milardo, R. M. (1982). Friendship
networks in developing relationships: Converging and
diverging social environments. Social Psychology
Quarterly, 45, 162-172.
Milardo, R. M., Johnson, M.
P., & Houston, T. L. (1983). Developing close relationships:
Changing patterns of interaction between pair members
and social networks. Journal of Personality and
Social Psychology, 44, 964-976.
Wellman, B., Wong, R. Y.,
Tindall, D., & Nazer, N. (1997). A decade of network
change: turnover, persistence and stability in personal
communities. Social Networks, 19, 27-50.
Wellman, B., Frank, O., Espinoza,
V., Lundquist, S., & Wilson, C. (1991). Social
Networks, 13, 223-249. [rec]
OCT 12: Public Life in a Couples Culture
Goffman, E. (1977). Relations
in public: Microstudies of the public order. NY:
Harper Torchbooks. pp. 19-27.
Amador, X., & Kiersky,
J. (1998). Being single in a couples’ world.
NY: Free Press. Chapter 12, “Feeling invisible,”
pp. 201-222.
Schwartzberg, N., Berliner,
K., & Jacob, D. (1995). Single in a married
world: A life cycle framework for working with the unmarried
adult. NY: Norton.
Chapter 1, “The
‘problem’ of singlehood,” pp. 3-12.
Chapter 2, “The
couples culture and the single adult,” pp. 13-29.
Chapter 4, “An
overview of the life cycle,” pp. 51-57.
Chapter 10, “Single
and gay: Issues and opportunities,” pp. 125-145.
OCT 19: In Their Own Words
(1) Reports of accounts of
singles in the books by Anderson & Stewart, Clements,
Gordon, Reilly, and Simon.
(2) Descriptions of ideas
for final projects.
OCT 26: Race, Social Class, and Culture
Dixon, R. B. (1978). Late
marriage and non-marriage as demographic responses:
Are they similar? Population Studies, 32, 449-466.
Staples, R., & Johnson,
L. B. (1993). Black families at the crossroads:
Challenges and prospects. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Chapter 5, “Singlehood and partner selection,”
pp. 94-120.
Topley, M. (1975). Marriage
resistance in rural Kwangtung. In M. Wolf & R.
Witke (Eds.), Women in Chinese society (pp. 67-88).
Stanford: Stanford University Press.
Higgenbottom, E. (1981).
Is marriage a priority? Class differences in marital
options of educated Black women. In P. J. Stein (Ed.),
Single life: Unmarried adults in social context
(pp. 259-267). NY: St. Martin’s Press. [rec]
NOV 2: Civil Status, Health, and Mental Health
Pearlin, L. I., & Johnson,
J. S. (1977). Marital status, life strains, and depression.
American Sociological Review, 42, 704-715.
Gotlib, I. H., & McCabe,
S. B. (1990). Marriage and psychopathology. In F.
D. Fincham & T. N. Bradbury (Eds.), The psychology
of marriage: Basic issues and applications (pp.
226-257). NY: Guilford. [read pages 226-233]
Gotlib, I. H., Lewinsohn,
P. M., & Seeley, J. R. (1998). Consequences of
depression during adolescence: Marital status and marital
functioning in early adulthood. Journal of Abnormal
Psychology, 107, 686-690.
Tucker, J. S., Friedman, H.
S., Wingard, D. L., & Schwartz, J. E. (1996). Marital
history at midlife as a predictor of longevity: Alternative
explanations to the protective effect of marriage.
Health Psychology, 15, 94-101.
NOV 9: Lonely or Alone?
Fischer, C. S., & Phillips,
S. L. (1982). Who is alone? Social characteristics
of people with small networks. In L. A. Peplau &
D. Perlman (Eds.), Loneliness: A sourcebook of current
theory, research, and therapy (pp. 21-39). NY:
Wiley.
Dykstra, P. A. (1995). Loneliness
among the never and formerly married: The importance
of supportive friendships and a desire for independence.
Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 50B,
S321-S329.
NOV 16 and NOV 23: Reports
of final projects
NOV 30: Older Singles
Keith, P. M. (1986). The
social context and resources of the unmarried in old
age. International Journal of Aging and Human Development,
23, 81-96.
Allen, K. R., & Pickett,
R. S. (1987). Forgotten streams in the family life
course: Utilization of qualitative retrospective interviews
in the analysis of lifelong single women’s family
careers. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 49,
517-526.
Braito, R., & Anderson,
D. (1983). The ever-single elderly woman. In E. W.
Markson (Ed.), Older women: Issues and prospects
(pp. 195-225). Lexington, MA: Lexington Books.
DEC 7: Jobs, Economics, and Caregiving
Williams, L. (1994, May 29).
Childless workers demanding equity in corporate world.
The New York Times, pp. 1, 22.
Sokoloff, N. J. (1981). Early
work patterns of single and married women. In P. J.
Stein (Ed.), Single life: Unmarried adults in social
context (pp. 238-259). NY: St. Martin’s Press.
Burnley, C. S. (1987). Caregiving:
The impact on emotional support for single women. Journal
of Aging Studies, 1, 253-264.
