ABSTRACT
Throughout the course of a woman’s life there are many life transitions that occur. Some of these transitions may have been chosen and anticipated, at least in part–e.g., educational and career choices, marriage, child bearing, and divorce. Other transitions in a woman’s life may occur without her choice. These may include the development of a serious illness and the dissolution of a marriage through widowhood. Even in these unchosen and perhaps unanticipated life transitions a woman may respond in many different ways. She may experience no distress, she may be overwhelmed by distress, or she may initially have difficulty and then adapt. What factors cause women to respond differently?
