infidelityandbetrayalinmarriage（21页）.docVIP

“Infidelity and Betrayal in Marriage: A Content Analysis of Men Who Cheat in Hollywood Films” Carolyn Logan Undergraduate Student Saint Mary’s College Notre Dame, IN 46556 clogan01@ Advisor: Susan Alexander Department of Sociology St. Mary’s College (574) 284-4728 salexand@ ABSTRACT Previous literature specifically on extramarital affairs portrayed in American film is not available. Since people are being exposed to affairs in Hollywood films, this study will evaluate how extramarital affairs, specifically those associated with a male mid-life crisis, are socially constructed in Hollywood films from the 1950s to 2005. Using a content analysis of 12 films from the 1950s to 2005, this study focused on numerous characteristics surrounding adulterous husbands. Overall, this study found that the typical adulterous male in a Hollywood film is a white, 37 year old heterosexual business man, married with children. “Infidelity and Betrayal in Marriage: A Content Analysis of Men Who Cheat in Hollywood Films” Films that show men cheating on their wives are socializing today’s youth. While adultery is a reality of modern day, the media and films are partially responsible for shaping social attitudes about how to view such “deviant” behavior. The purpose of this paper is to analyze how extramarital affairs, as related to the male mid-midlife “crisis” has been constructed in media, specifically in Hollywood films from the 1950’s to the year 2005. The data collected from this analysis of films is utilized to identify a trend and the changes occurred over a period of time. PREVIOUS LITERATURE ON EXTRAMARITAL AFFAIRS Male Power and Status Richardson (1988) argues that because of social-structural and social-psychological reasons, men have greater power than women in adulterous relationships. Richardson says that single women who have sexual relationships with married men are considered to be in a “power-imbalanced” relationship. He argues that