The relationship of children's concern and the couple's empty-nest stress experiences with their relationship purpose

Abstract

This correlational study aimed to find out whether the degree of children’s concern for their parents and the empty-nest stress experiences of these parents have an effect on their relationship purpose. A total of 40 couples participated in the study. The Children’s Concern Scale, the Perceived Stress Scale and the Relationship Purpose Scale were utilized for the data gathering. Generally, the results revealed that the higher the concern showed by the children to their empty-nest parents, the more likely that the empty-nest couple will focus on their marital relationship. However, the average amount of stress experienced by the empty-nest couples does not have a significant relationship with their relationship purpose.