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Two of the objectives of the early phase of this work were to demonstrate the important role of personal and social factors, in addition to cultural ones, in nuclear family life, and to show the wide range of individual personality and family types within a single peasant community. In this paper, the author compares the internal structure, psychodynamics, and personality development in two families. The author will also attempt to relate the psychodynamics of these two families to the broader social, economic, and political trends in the village and nation, in order to show the differential effects of the Mexican Revolution of 1910-20 upon these families. The Rojas family is one of thirty-seven better-to-do landowning families in the upper economic group of the village. Only 4 per cent of the families in the village are in this category. The Martinez is one of the poorer landless families of the lowest economic group which constitutes about 80 per cent of all families. Although the two families are now at different levels on the economic ladder, it is important to remember that at the time they set up independent households they were both poor.

This article discusses various issues related to interpersonal conflicts in Chulsanto, a village in Chiapas in Mexico. Chulsanto is a community of one thousand people who speak a Mayan language. It is located in the southern highlands of Mexico. The article author has observed a few types of interpersonal conflicts and the means by which they are reduced. The source of conflict in relationships seems to be a failure to meet expectations of one or both parties to an existing relationship. Each role relationship between two individuals or coalitions of individuals has a recognized range of jeopardy or imperfection of performance which is acceptable, that is, which does not require the dissolution of the relationship. The severance of some role relationships is more serious than the severance of others. The source of conflict in highly relational role is in fact functional in one's role as community member. An individual can be a bad community member and continue to be a good husband if the imperfection in his role performance is specific to the lowly relational role. Individuals are constantly coming into conflict and restoring or severing role relationships while the community at large remains essentially disinterested. Conflicts which involve role performance demonstrate various regularities.