Confronting Relationship Challenges

Book excerpt: Confronting Relationship Challenges moves forward the "Understanding Relationship Processes" series by addressing the difficult side of relationships. This volume, edited by Steve Duck and Julia T. Wood, takes an honest look at what can go wrong with relationships and highlights some of the challenges partners might face while struggling to comprehend their connectedness to each other. Discussion in this volume moves away from any implication that relationships are only good and delightful, because even in the very closest of relationships, pain and suffering are inevitable. The contributing scholars examine the management and tolerance skills required of participants in order to construct meaningful interpretations of themselves, each other, and the relationship while all of the components evolve and interact in continually changing contexts. Issues examined include conflict, enemies, reconfiguring "family" after a divorce, codependency, interpersonal violence, HIV/AIDS, chronic illness, and managing grief over a partner's death. Students and scholars in interpersonal communication, social psychology, clinical/counseling psychology, family studies, social work, and sociology will find this volume to be a valuable resource.