Understanding Research in Personal Relationships


Book Description

`The main strengths of the book are its uniqueness... its mix of emphasis on methods, statistics, and ideas, its commentaries by the authors, and the well-chosen journal articles′ - John Harvey, University of Iowa Understanding Research in Personal Relationships is a comprehensive introduction to the key readings on human and close relationships. Organized into twelve thematic chapters with editorial commentary throughout, the Editors offer a critical reading of the major research articles in the field of relationship studies published in the last few years. Scholarly papers, two per chapter, are presented in an abridged form and critiqued in a carefully structured way that instructs students on the way to read research, and to critically evaluate research in this field. The book, therefore, has a thoroughly didactic focus as the student is given historical, theoretical and methodological contexts to each article as well as an explanation of key terms and ideas. Key features about this book: - Cross-Disciplinary use - an excellent book for all students taking human relationship modules in psychology, communication studies, sociology, social work, family studies and other subjects across the social sciences. - Maps onto course teaching - ideal for 12 week semester term course, covering major themes such as love, attraction, conflict and social networks. - Pedagogical - `How to use this book′ section at the start; chapter introductions and summaries throughout; glossary of key terms highlighted throughout the book at the end of the text. This text is essential reading for undergraduate and postgraduate students wanting a straightforward, didiactic guide to understanding research on human relationships.




Understanding Research in Personal Relationships


Book Description

Understanding Research in Personal Relationships is a comprehensive introduction to the key readings on human and close relationships. Organized into twelve thematic chapters with editorial commentary throughout, the editors offer a critical reading of the major research articles in the field of relationship studies published in the last few years. Scholarly papers, two per chapter, are presented in an abridged form and critiqued in a carefully structured way that instructs students on the way to read research, and to critically evaluate research in this field. The book, therefore, has a thoroughly didactic focus as the student is given historical, theoretical and methodological contexts to each article as well as an explanation of key terms and ideas.




Understanding Personal Relationships


Book Description

Understanding Personal Relationships introduces readers to the new interdisciplinary field of personal relationships. It does so by integrating central themes from the fields of social psychology, sociology, clinical psychology and family studies. In a comprehensive, bibliographic essay, the editors give an overview of the growth of the field and predict future areas of research and clinical practice. Early chapters deal with some of the theoretical issues in the study of personal relationships, while other contributors discuss the motivational issues in relationships. Five chapters examine specific types of relationships: those which are established (like marriage); those which are in a state of transition; those which are under stress; and those which have broken. Through its breadth of coverage and the presentation of writers from several different disciplines, this volume conveys the spirit of pioneering and practical optimism that characterizes the new interdisciplinary approach to understanding personal relationships.




Personal Relationships and Personal Networks


Book Description

The effort to understand personal relationships has traditionally focused on the individual characteristics of participants. Personal Relationships and Personal Networks takes this analysis a step further, focusing on research linking participants' feelings and actions within a given personal relationship to the larger social context surrounding it. Author Malcolm R. Parks expands on the idea that the initiation, development, maintenance, and dissolution of relationships are inextricably connected to each participant's social network-a perspective that allows for a better appreciation of our connection to the world, and a greater understanding our significant power as social actors. This book offers a new way to consider basic notions about how relationships form, such as how particular people meet, and how relationships are started. Among many findings, the volume demonstrates that individuals in relationships feel closer and generally more connected when they also have a greater amount of contact with the members of each other's personal networks and when they believe that network members support their relationship. Additional topics discussed include how this social context model is applicable to different types of relationships; how participants interact with network members; how social networks are involved in the deterioration of personal relationships; and what drives change in relationships. Students, researchers, and professionals in a wide variety of disciplines such as communication, psychology, sociology, anthropology, family studies, clinical psychology, public health nursing, education, and social work will find this book useful, as will anyone seeking to better understand their own personal relationships.




Handbook of Personal Relationships


Book Description

As the field of social relationships has grown enormously, this edition has been revised to include a new section on family relationships, focusing on the central truth that the dynamics of personal relationships are a key basis of social life.




Understanding Relationships


Book Description

The study of personal relationships has proliferated as an interdisciplinary social science field. In this volume, leading authority Steve Duck brings the reader up to date on basic concepts and research findings on all aspects of personal relationships. The book discusses how children learn key relationship skills and how adult relationships start, develop, and are sustained, including friendship, romance, and heterosexual and same-sex partnerships. Coverage of clinical and social policy implications of the research gives the book a practical edge. This accessible, engaging book contains much of value for students of relationships, communication studies, and psychology.




Individuals in Relationships


Book Description

with Linda K. Acitelli, Peter A. Andersen, Charles R. Berger, Marcia Dixson, Beverly Fehr, Julie Fitness, Garth J. O. Fletcher & James M. Honeycutt What special knowledge must a person have to participate in a relationship? What special language structures do persons typically use in entering or conducting relationships? Individuals in Relationships provides answers to these questions and offers an interdisciplinary look at the individual processes necessary to, and presumed in, relationships. It deals with the cognitive--the mental processes individuals bring to relationships, ranging from their thought patterns and attributional styles to the ways in which they recall relationship events and treat or manipulate shared knowledge. Further, it covers such topics as mutual understanding in relationships, cognitive schemata in personal relationships, and memory structures for the beginning and end of relationships. Using the theme of cognition as a starting point, this comprehensive volume lays the groundwork for further exploration of individuals in relationships, specifically, the broader social contextual factors of such relationships. A volume featuring the latest scholarship that examines cognitive relationship processes, Individuals in Relationships is particularly useful for a wide range of scholars and professionals interested in personal relationships, social psychology, communication studies, family studies, sociology, and gender studies. "The volume does a fine job of describing the mental representations and cognitive processes people bring to their close relationships. . . . Clearly, one of the strengths of this volume is its coherence. The emphasis on cognition is defined at the outset, and is successfully developed throughout. . . . Taken together, the chapters that compose this volume accomplish two important tasks. First, they provide an excellent review of the literature on social cognition in close relationships. This, by itself, is a good reason for those interested in personal relationships to have the book on their shelf. Second, the chapters supply a preliminary blueprint for future research on cognitive processes in relationships. By discussing controversial issues, describing methodological dilemmas, and positing interesting research questions and hypotheses, the authors point readers toward a number of gaps in the current literature. It is the author′s ability to analyze past work and look toward future work that makes Individuals in Relationships a particularly stimulating volume." --Journal of Marriage and the Family




Time and Intimacy


Book Description

There is a mysterious connection between our experiences of intimacy--of love, the longing to feel connected, and sexual embrace--and the human sense of time--eternity, impermanence, and rhythm. In this critical analysis of the time-intimacy equation, Bennett shows how the scientific study of personal relationships can address this mystery. As a study of transpersonal science, this book points to the possible evolution of intimacy and of our consciousness of time, and how the two evolutionary paths weave together. Dr. Bennett draws from a wide array of resources to advance and marry two compelling themes: first, the social and clinical science of personal relationships should integrate the spiritual or transpersonal dimension of intimacy, and second, science can contribute to lay understandings by describing the richly temporal aspects of relationships. In blending popular literature, transpersonal psychology, and scientific research and theory, this work also attempts to address the lack of dialogue between academics who study personal intimacy and those writers in the popular press who give advice and guidelines for building intimacy. Time and Intimacy is written for a broad audience, intended for those with a general interest in relationships, as well as for students, counselors, and psychologists. It can be used as a text in courses on personal relationships, as well as to supplement courses in humanistic psychology, transpersonal psychology, interpersonal communication, relationships, marital and family counseling, human relations, and related areas. Because it advances an interdisciplinary understanding of personal relationships, this book is certain to challenge prevailing views about the meaning of intimacy in both the academic and popular literatures.




Personal Relationships Across the Lifespan


Book Description

Personal Relationships Across the Lifespan presents a comprehensive and up-to-date account of the role of personal relationships in people's lives. Highlighting areas of special significance and research interest at each major life-stage, Patricia Noller, Judith A. Feeney and Candida Peterson, examine how close relationships develop over time and influence individual adjustment. They explore a wide range of relationships, including some that are often neglected, such as those with siblings, adult children and elderly parents. They also look at alternative family forms, such as single-parent families and step-families, and address important themes such as intimacy, conflict and power. With insightful discussion of the theory and methods typically used by researchers working in this area, Personal Relationships Across the Lifespan is an ideal resource for students and researchers of both relationships and lifespan development. It will also be of interest to practitioners, such as social workers and family therapists, working with clients with relational concerns and anyone wanting to learn more about the nature of relationships.




Encyclopedia of Human Relationships


Book Description

This encyclopedia provides a structure to understand the essential rudiments of human behaviour and interpersonal relationships