The Developmental Course of Marital Dysfunction

by Edited by Thomas N. Bradbury , Foreword by Robert L. Weiss

• ISBN13: 9780521028585
• ISBN10: 0521028582
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-11-02
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

How do marriages become unhappy? How do marriages change? What are the theories and methods that can best illuminate our understanding of marital development? This volume comprehensively explores how marriages develop and deteriorate, and in doing so, brings together leading scholars to present research on the longitudinal course of marriage. The chapters share a common focus on the early phases of marriage but address a diverse array of topics, including marital conflict, personality, social support, the transition to parenthood, violence, ethnicity, stress, alcohol use, commitment and sexuality. Implications of this research for alleviating marital distress are also noted. The book concludes with six provocative analyses by prominent scholars in the areas of sociology, clinical psychology, social psychology and developmental psychology.

Table of Contents

Foreword Robert L. Weiss

Introduction Thomas N. Bradbury

Part I. Conceputal and Empirical Contributions: 1. Communication in early marriage: responses to conflict, nonverbal accuracy and conversational patterns Patricia Noller and Judith A. Feeney

2. Marital aggression, quality and stability in the first year of marriage: findings from the Buffalo newlywed study Kenneth E. Leonard and Linda J. Roberts

3. Accommodation processes during the early years of marriage Caryl E. Rusbult, Victor L. Bissonnette, Ximena B. Arriaga and Chante L. Cox

4. The psychological infrastructure of courtship and marriage: the role of personality and compatibility in romantic relationships Ted L. Huston and Renate M. Houts

5. Happiness in stable marriages: the early years Joseph Veroff, Elizabeth Douvan, Terri L. Orbuch and Linda K. Acitelli

6. Developmental changes in marital satisfaction: a 6-year prospective longitudinal study of newlywed couples Lawrence A. Kurdek

7. The development of marriage: a 9-year perspective Kristin Lindahl, Mari Clements and Howard Markman

8. Premarital predictors of relationship outcomes: a 15-year follow-up of the Boston couples study Charles T. Hill and Letitia Anne Peplau

9. Optimizing longitudinal research for understanding and preventing marital dysfunction Thomas N. Bradbury, Catherine L. Cohan and Benjamin R. Karney

10. Socialization into marital roles: testing a contextual developmental model of marital functioning Irv Tallman, Peter J. Burke and Victor Gecas

11. Physical aggression in marriage: a developmental analysis K. Daniel O'Leary and Michele Cascardi

Part II. Invited Commentaries: 12. On intervention and relationship events: a marital therapist looks at longitudinal research on marriage Andrew Christensen

13. A developmentalist's perspective on marital change Ross D. Parke

14. Couples gender and time: comments on method David A. Kenny

15. On the etiology of marital decay and its consequences: comments from a clinical psychologist John M. Gottman

16. Problems and prospects in longitudinal research on marriage: a sociologist's perspective Norval D. Glenn

17. A social psychological view of marital dysfunction and stability Ellen Berscheid.