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Intimate Relationships
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Intimate Relationships

August 2020 | 464 pages | SAGE Publications, Inc
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Recipient of a 2021 Most Promising New Textbook Award from the Textbook & Academic Authors Association (TAA)

Intimate Relationships provides students with a comprehensive understanding of the science behind relationships using a modern approach. Award-winning teacher and author Wind Goodfriend integrates coverage of family and friendship relationships in context with research methods, open science, theories, and romantic relationships so that readers can learn about all types of relationships and their interactions, including conflict and the dark side of relationships. The text supports today's students by frequently applying relationship theories to examples that can be found in popular culture, helping students see how psychology can apply to the world that surrounds them.

Included with this title:

The password-protected Instructor Resource Site (formally known as SAGE Edge) offers access to all text-specific resources, including a test bank and editable, chapter-specific PowerPoint® slides. Learn more.
 
Preface
 
Acknowledgments
 
About the Author
 
Chapter 1 • An Introduction to Relationship Science
Why Study Intimate Relationships?

 
What Are Different Kinds of Intimate Relationships?

 
How Is This Book Organized?

 
 
Chapter 2 • Research Methods and Analysis
What Research Methods Are Used to Study Relationships?

 
How Are Results Analyzed?

 
What Is “Open Science”?

 
 
Chapter 3 • Attachment Theory
What Is Attachment Theory, and How Was It Formed?

 
How Is Attachment Theory Measured and Applied to Adult Relationships?

 
What Are Important Questions For and About Attachment Theory?

 
 
Chapter 4 • The Evolutionary Perspective
How Is an Evolutionary Perspective Applied to Intimate Relationships?

 
How Does This Perspective Explain Sex Differences in Promiscuity and Jealousy?

 
How Can This Perspective Be Applied to Other Important Relationship Behaviors?

 
 
Chapter 5 • Interdependence Theory
What Are the Main Ideas Within Interdependence Theory?

 
What Factors Predict Relationship Commitment and Stability?

 
What Advances to the Theory Have Been Made?

 
 
Chapter 6 • Relationships Across Our Lifetime
How Do Our Earliest Relationships Form?

 
How Do We Choose Singlehood Versus Commitment in Young Adulthood?

 
How Do Relationships Change Later in Life?

 
 
Chapter 7 • Friendship
What Predicts How and When Friendships Will Form?

 
How Are Friendships Maintained?

 
How Do Friendships Change Over Our Lifetime?

 
 
Chapter 8 • Attraction
What Physical Factors Predict Attraction?

 
What Psychological Factors Predict Attraction?

 
What Environmental Factors Predict Attraction?

 
 
Chapter 9 • Sexuality
What Is the Sexual Spectrum?

 
How Do People Vary in Their Sexual Desires?

 
How Does Culture Influence Sexual Thoughts and Behaviors?

 
 
Chapter 10 • Social Cognition
How Are Impressions Formed and Maintained?

 
How Are We Biased Toward Our Current Partner?

 
How Do Our Worldviews Affect Our Relationships?

 
 
Chapter 11 • Communication and Conflict
How Can Communication Build Intimacy in Relationships?

 
How Has Technology Affected Communication in Relationships?

 
How Do Couples Engage in Conflict Management?

 
 
Chapter 12 • Sexual Assault and Relationship Violence
What Does Research Say About Sexual Assault and Rape?

 
What Does Relationship Violence Look Like?

 
How Do Survivors Escape and Heal?

 
 
Chapter 13 • Ending or Enduring Love
How Do Couple Members Cope With Relationship Problems?

 
What Can Couple Members Do to Maintain a Healthy Relationship Over Time?

 
 
References
 
Glossary
 
Index

Supplements

Instructor Resource Site
edge.sagepub.com/goodfriend1e

Online resources included with this text

The online resources for your text are available via the password-protected Instructor Resource Site, which offers access to all text-specific resources, including a test bank and editable, chapter-specific PowerPoint® slides.

This textbook is quite comprehensive, providing a clear understanding of intimate relationships and the theoretical constructs and models implied in those dynamics. I also considers a chapter on intimate partner abuse, which is particularly relevant to my students.

Dr Aleksandra Monteiro
Dept of Psychology (Kedleston Cps), Derby University
March 21, 2022
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Key features
KEY FEATURES:
  • A conversational tone and inclusive language make the book highly accessible, approachable, and enjoyable for readers of all backgrounds.
  • Chapter-opening Big Questions identify what forthcoming content will address; Big Questions are answered in summaries at the conclusion of chapters.
  • Learning objectives list what students should be able to accomplish upon chapter completion; objectives are revisited at the conclusion of chapters alongside relevant key terms.
  • Relationships and Popular Culture sections tie chapter material to a TV show, movie, song, or book to help students see class topics in the everyday world around them.
  • Research Deep Dive sections examine a study in terms of research methods, statistical analysis, and conclusions to help students see the science within the study of intimate relationships.
  • Check Your Understanding multiple choice questions with accompanying answer keys throughout chapters help students see if they are retaining the material.
  • Application Activities and Critical Thinking Questions throughout chapters include class activities, essay prompts, and discussion questions that serve as a built-in way for instructors to incorporate discussions and assignments.
  • What's My Score? features prompt students to complete a self-report measure of a variable and check their results, making the material personally relevant.