HANSON, SANDRA LOUISE; PHD

                         THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY, 1981

                         SOCIOLOGY, INDIVIDUAL AND FAMILY STUDIES (0628)
 

                         A multi-dimensional set of family life cycle indicators, including timing of family events, changing family
                         structure and composition, and shifts in occupational, social and economic role systems is developed
                         within the context of Family Development Theory. Using a 24 year longitudinal data set, the contributions
                         of dynamic analyses and family life cycle variables to the explanation of married women's status and
                         earnings attainment and inter- and intragenerational mobility are examined. The findings indicate that
                         models including family life cycle variables in addition to status attainment and human capital variables
                         explain significantly more variance in attainment and mobility than do models incorporating status
                         attainment and human capital variables alone. Variables which are indicators of the timing of family events
                         are the most cogent of all family life cycle variables examined in this research. The findings suggest that
                         the effects of early family experiences on attainment and mobility are larger than those of later family
                         experiences and these effects are permanent although they attenuate somewhat over time. Statistical
                         and mathematical models which incorporate change in independent and dependent variables give
                         important insights into the process by which women gain status in the occupational world. Static and
                         dynamic analyses show that human capital variables measuring on the job investments play a minimal role
                         in women's attainment and mobility.

Social Systems Simulation Group P.O. Box 6904 San Diego, CA  92166-0904 Roland Werner, Principal Phone/FAX  (619) 660-1603