Understanding Marriage
Developments in the Study of Couple Interaction
Advances in Personal Relationships Series

This edited volume draws together a wide range of exciting developments in the study of marital interaction. A significant feature of the book is its focus, not only on conflict and negative interactions but also on the processes by which couples maintain happy and constructive relationships. The chapters review and integrate the extensive literature in this area, as well as presenting important research findings. The contributors come from the disciplines of communication, social psychology and clinical psychology, and have national and international reputations for their work in this area. The findings reflect developments in theory and methodology, and have important implications for those working to strengthen and repair marital relationships.

Introduction; Part I. The Effect of Cognition on Interaction Patterns: Introduction to Part 1; 1. Thought and action: connecting attributions to behaviours in married couples' interactions Valerie Manusov; 2. Self-evaluation motives in close relationships: a model of global enhancement and specific verification Lisa A. Neff and Benjamin R. Karney; 3. Competition in romantic relationships: do partners build niches? Steven R. H. Beach, Daniel Whitaker, Heather A. O'Mahen, Deborah Jones, Abraham Tesser and Frank Fincham; 4. Cognition and communication during marital conflict: how alcohol affects subjective coding of interaction in aggressive and non-aggressive couples Alan Sillars, Kenneth E. Leonard, Linda J. Roberts and Tim Dun; Part II. Understanding the Importance of Positive Interaction: Introduction to Part 2; 5. Observational 'windows' to intimacy processes in marriage Linda J. Roberts and Danielle R. Greenberg; 6. Bases for giving benefits in marriage: what is ideal? what is realistic? what really happens? Margaret S. Clark, Steve Graham and Nancy Grote; 7. Shared participation in self-expanding activities: positive effects on experienced marital quality Arthur Aron, Christine C. Norman, Elaine N. Aron and Gary Lewandowski; Part III. Coping with Disappointment, Criticism and Betrayal: Introduction to Part 3; 8. Coping with disappointments in marriage: when partners' standards are unmet Anita L. Vangelisti and Alicia L. Alexander; 9. On empathic accuracy and husbands' abusiveness: the 'overattribution bias' William E. Schweinle and William Ickes; 10. The war of the roses: an interdependence analysis of betrayal and forgiveness Caryl E. Rusbult, Madoka Kumashiro, Eli J. Finkel and Tim Wildschut; Part IV. Power, Conflict and Violence in Marital Interaction: Introduction to Part 4; 11. Demand-withdraw communication during couple conflict: a review and analysis Kathleen A. Eldridge and Andrew Christensen; 12. Approaches to the study of power in violent and nonviolent marriages, and in gay male and lesbian cohabiting relationships John Gottman, Janice Driver, Dan Yoshimoto and Regina Rushe; 13. The communication of couples in violent and nonviolent relationships: temporal associations with own and partners' anxiety/arousal and behavior Patricia Noller and Nigel Roberts; Part V. Marital Interaction at Important Transition Periods: Introduction to Part 5; 14. Adult attachment, the transition to parenthood, and marital well-being Jeffry A. Simpson, W. Steven Rholes, Lorne Campbell, Carol Wilson and Sisi Tran; 15. Allocation and performance of household tasks: a comparison of new parents and childless couples Judith A. Feeney and Patricia Noller; 16. Caregiving and its influence on marital interactions between older spouses Helen Edwards and Patricia Noller; Part VI. Interventions for Strengthening Relationships: Introduction to Part 6; 17. Risk factors, risk processes, and the longitudinal course of newlywed marriage Lisa B. Story, Alexia D. Rothman and Thomas N. Bradbury; Does working at a relationship work? relationship self-regulation and relationship outcomes W. Kim Halford, Keithia L. Wilson, Alf Lizzio and Elizabeth Moore; Conclusions.