Gender differences in the continuation of family rituals

The present study examined gender differences in how likely college students are to see themselves, in the future, taking primary responsibility for planning, implement, or getting others involved in family rituals. The ability of agency, communion, parental overbearing and caring, and parental levels of initiation to predict the likelihood of future ritual initiation and the meaningfulness of family rituals was examined. Participants completed the Personal Attributes Questionnaire, the Parental Bonding Instrument, the Family Ritual Questionnaire, and a series of questions regarding rituals in their families. Women were more likely than men to see themselves initiating family rituals. The level of ritual initiation by same-sex parents and communion were significant predictors of the likelihood of future ritual initiation. Communion, though a significant predictor for all subjects and for males alone, was not a significant predictor for females alone. Parental caring was the only significant predictor of the meaningfulness of rituals. The present study's findings have important implications for the implementation of rituals in therapeutic work with families and for the future of role division and role overload in families.