Psychology of Close Relationships

The purpose of this course is to provide an overview of theory and research on the psychology of interpersonal relationships from a social psychological perspective, with a particular focus on friendships and romantic relationships. The goals for the course are: 1) To familiarize students with the variables important to the social psychological study of interpersonal relationships, 2) To review the major theoretical foundations and current research, not only from social psychology but also from other disciplines (e.g., communication, personality psychology), and 3) To give students practice in reading empirical journal articles, writing, and oral presentation. The course will examine some of the theories and research related to the psychology of interpersonal relationships. Some of the topics this course will cover include: theoretical perspectives, research methods, culture, attraction, attachment, social cognition, communication, interdependence, friendship, love, stressors in relationships, relationship maintenance, conflict, and dissolution.