Here is the first, comprehensive volume in a field that has grown exponentially in the last ten years. The handbook is organized across disciplines to reflect the nature of the field, and has a broad range of appeal to a variety of teachers and researchers.

The Cambridge Handbook of Personal Relationships serves as a benchmark of the current state of scholarship in this dynamic field synthesizing the extant theoretical and empirical literature, tracing its historical roots, and making recommendations for future directions. The volume addresses a broad range of established and emerging topics including: theoretical and methodological issues that influence the study of personal relationships; research and theory on relationship development, the nature and functions of personal relationships across the lifespan; individual differences and their influences on relationships; relationship processes such as cognition, emotion, and communication; relational qualities such as satisfaction and commitment; environmental influences on personal relationships; and maintenance and repair of relationships. The authors are experts from a variety of disciplines including several subfields of psychology, communication, family studies and sociology who have made major contributions to the understanding of relationships.

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.

First Published in 2012. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Focusing particularly on communication processes in relationships, this text presents the different theories about personal relationships that have emerged from different traditions in communication studies.

Although sexuality is an integral part of close romantic relationships, research linking these two constructs has been less systematic than other areas pertaining to close relationships. To date, researchers in communication, sociology, family studies, psychology, and psychiatry, have made significant advances in both of these fields. The editors' goal is to integrate this research into one volume. They bring together major scholars from the diversity of fields working on close relationship topics to examine past contributions and new directions in sexuality. The emphasis is on theoretical integration and stimulation, methodological rigor, and critical analysis. This volume explores: *early sexual experiences and their impact on late life sexuality; *how life's stresses impact sexuality and satisfaction with closeness; *the affect of postpartum depression on sexuality; and *the relationship between control, power, anger, as well as revenge and sexual processes in couples. The Handbook of Sexuality in Close Relationships is intended for students and researchers in the disciplines of social, clinical, developmental, and health psychology; family studies; counseling; and interpersonal, family, and health communication. An excellent reference in advanced courses in close relationships taught in psychology, communications, sociology, anthropology, and family studies, the material in Part V will also appeal to clinical psychologists, health professionals, and policymakers.

Provides an interdisciplinary perspective on behaviors and strategies used to maintain intimate relationships.