Answer to Question 1
Because of their relatively larger financial responsibilities, middle-aged men are more susceptible to the negative effects of unemployment than men in other age groups.
The effects are more detrimental for those whose contributions to the family are seen as primarily financial in nature. Because this tends to be more true for men than for women, this helps explain the gender difference in the negative effects of unemployment. Higher education generally leads to lower feelings of stress immediately after losing one's job, probably because those with higher educations tend to find reemployment faster. Unemployment rates for many ethnic groups are higher than those for European Americans. It tends to take ethnic minority individuals longer to find new employment after losing a job.
Answer to Question 2
Young adults tend to participate in a wider range of leisure activities and in activities that are more intense, such as scuba diving or hang gliding. Middle-aged adults tend to focus on family and home leisure activities. Those in older age do more sedentary leisure activities, like reading or watching TV. However, participation in young adulthood tends to predict participation in older adulthood. Overall, one's preference for certain leisure activities is set early in life. What changes across time is how physically intense one's participation is. Overall, cross-cultural research supports the idea that participating in leisure activities is associated with well-being across the life course.