Purdue University Purdue e-Pubs Department of Psychological Sciences Faculty Department of Psychological Sciences Publications 2011 May-December Paradoxes: An Exploration of Age- Gap Relationships in Western Society Justin Lehmiller Colorado State University - Fort Collins,
[email protected] Christopher Agnew Purdue University,
[email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/psychpubs Part of the Psychology Commons Recommended Citation Lehmiller, Justin and Agnew, Christopher, "May-December Paradoxes: An Exploration of Age-Gap Relationships in Western Society" (2011). Department of Psychological Sciences Faculty Publications. Paper 27. http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/psychpubs/27 This document has been made available through Purdue e-Pubs, a service of the Purdue University Libraries. Please contact
[email protected] for additional information. 1 To appear in: W. R. Cupach & B. H. Spitzberg (Eds.), The Dark Side of Close Relationships II. New York, NY: Routledge. May-December Paradoxes: An Exploration of Age-Gap Relationships in Western Society Justin J. Lehmiller Colorado State University Christopher R. Agnew Purdue University Correspondence regarding this chapter should be sent to Justin J. Lehmiller, Department of Psychology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523- 1876,
[email protected]. 2 May-December Paradoxes: An Exploration of Age-Gap Relationships in Western Society In the cinematic classic The Graduate, 21-year-old Benjamin Braddock (played by Dustin Hoffman) is seduced by the much older, but very attractive Mrs. Robinson (played by Anne Bancroft), the wife of one of his father’s friends. This seduction results in an ongoing affair that lasts for an entire summer. As the film progresses, the plot becomes a bit convoluted as Benjamin falls madly in love with Mrs.