The social networks surrounding intimate couples provide them with bonding and bridging social capital and have been theorized to be associated with their well-being and relationship quality. These networks are multidimensional, featuring compositional (e.g., the proportion of family members vs. friends) and structural characteristics (e.g., density, degree of overlap between spouses’ networks). Most previous studies of couple networks are based on partners’ global ratings of their network characteristics or network data collected from one member of the dyad. This study presents the analysis of “duocentric networks" or the combined personal networks of both members of a couple, collected from 207 mixed-sex newlywed couples living in low-income neighborhoods of Harris County, TX. We conducted a pattern-centric analysis of compositional and structural features to identify distinct types of couple networks. We identified five qualitatively distinct network types (wife family-focused, husband family-focused, shared friends, wife friend-focused, and extremely disconnected). Couples’ network types were associated with the quality of the relationships between couples and their network contacts (e.g., emotional support) but not with the quality of the couples’ relationship with each other. We argue that duocentric networks provide appropriate data for measuring bonding and bridging capital in couple networks.

Relationships and marriages between couples with intellectual disability are to be celebrated, as is the longer life expectancy now enjoyed by many with intellectual disability. However, dementia disproportionately affects people with intellectual disability, especially people with Down's syndrome. Research into experiences of couples without intellectual disability who are affected by dementia suggests that a relational perspective provides health and social care professionals with information to support the wellbeing of both partners. This dyadic perspective is missing for couples with an intellectual disability where one partner has dementia. There is currently no evidence base informing how each partner may best be supported. This scoping review, with three separate searches, aims to address this gap. The first search sought to establish if any studies had explored the experiences of couples with intellectual disability where one partner has dementia. After determining that no studies have been published to date, the review explores what is known about relationships in the context of dementia (N = 8) and in the context of intellectual disability (N = 10), in second and third searches. Different ways to approach care and support in relationships among partners, staff and other family members were identified and it was evident that support could act as a facilitator as well as a barrier to people and their relationships. While the lives of couples affected by dementia appeared to remain largely private, couples with intellectual disability had a high involvement of staff and family members in their life. Potential implications for future research with couples with intellectual disability affected by dementia are discussed, highlighting the importance of exploring how couples navigate emotional complexities and changes in their relationship, while understanding that the context in which the lives of people with intellectual disability take place and relationships happen is different.

Families of youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are vulnerable to maladaptive psychosocial experiences, including elevated youth emotional and behavioral problems (EBPs) and poor parent couple relationship outcomes. Yet, the extent to which these family psychosocial experiences are intertwined has been given little research attention. The present study longitudinally investigated the bidirectional associations between parent couple conflict (PCC) and youth EBPs in 188 families of children and adolescents with ASD (initially aged 5 to 12 years) across four time points (T1, T2, T3, T4), each spaced 12 months apart. Mother- and father-report of youth EBPs and PCC were entered into a cross-lagged panel model. After adjusting for youth age and intellectual disability status and parent education and couple relationship length, the results indicated that father-report of PCC predicted increased youth EBPs 12 months later (T1→T2 and T2→T3). In addition, father-report of youth EBPs predicted increased PCC 12 months later (T3→T4). Mother-report did not demonstrate cross-lagged effects. The findings suggest that fathers’ perceptions of PCC and youth emotional and behavioral functioning are transactionally related, highlighting the need for family-wide interventions.

This paper investigates the actions executed by Italian artists – male and female – centred on interpersonal relationships, at times with an insight into the dynamics of couples or directly involving the public. In Italy, during the 1960s and 1970s, various artists dedicated themselves to what were initially called happenings or actions, and only later became known as ‘performances’, but unlike in the better-known Body Art, the phenomenological exploration of the self and of reality frequently observed in the Arte Povera circle of artists, many welcomed the new sensibility embodied by feminism, which, by redefining gender positioning, emphasised the centrality of the ‘private’ sphere and revived interest in ‘affection’. This is particularly significant in light of the Italian cultural context, where women artists have often looked with suspicion at any initiatives dedicated explicitly to women's issues or at women-only exhibitions.

It is believed that conflict exists on a spectrum, which holds interest for many relationship researchers. However, it is not well understood how music is utilised within couples when they engage in conflict, considering music has been known to assist in reducing physiological, emotional, and social regulation. The proposed study explored how music was utilised in times of conflict for couples through a grounded theory approach. The main themes that emerged were: variability of choice, knowledge of partner's habits, communication, similarity of style, relational distance, repair attempt, music utilisation as relational engagement, emotional regulation, and hopeful togetherness. These themes are presented in a theoretical model of how couples utilise music to regulate social, emotional, and biological domains of their relationship.

Seeking to understand how emerging adult couples frame unmet needs viewed as a threat to their relationship, we examined narratives in which both partners (12 couples) or only one partner (37 couples) expressed break-up anxiety (BUA). The unmet need of Autonomy was more common in partners with BUA whereas Affiliation was more common in those without it. Overlap in narrating the same unmet needs related to BUA was common when both partners expressed BUA, modest when only the female and low when only the male partner expressed BUA. Female partners were more likely to mention BUA and intimacy problems related to BUA than male partners. Couple interventions that target how to disclose and process BUA may help partners develop more effective intimacy skills and, when need be, skills to end relationships in more adaptive ways.

This article presents the development of an instrument measuring relationship satisfaction, based on the theory that separates ‘relationship quality’ from ‘satisfaction’ concerning the semantic meaning of the concepts, and to evaluate psychometric properties of the new measure. Two studies were conducted in order to investigate the psychometric properties of the new scale, with 372 and 1,185 participants taking part in Study 1 and Study 2 respectively. Results revealed that the new scale has two-factor structure, adequate internal consistency reliability, and convergent, discriminant and known-groups validity.

This study examined the mediating role of romantic perfectionism in the associations linking romantic attachment insecurity and self-perceived dyadic coping in a community sample of 170 mixed-sex couples. Path analyses, based on the actor-partner interdependence model, revealed that other-oriented perfectionism in men and women mediated the link between their own attachment-related avoidance and dyadic coping. Other-oriented perfectionism in women mediated the link between their own attachment-related anxiety and dyadic coping. Findings contribute to advancing knowledge about the intrapersonal and interpersonal mechanisms underlying coping processes in couples. Results also inform clinical interventions targeting attachment insecurities and perfectionism in the context of romantic relationships.

This article tries to construct an ethical framework to address the issue of infertility through a creative use of Thomas Aquinas’ thought. Involuntary childlessness is one of the forgotten issues among Christian communities in West and Central Africa. Starting with the scientific definition of infertility, the article shows the gender differences and biases in the perception of childlessness in that region. Although infertility equally affects men and women, the latter, most of the time, are blamed for it. Although Scripture contains some ambivalent elements concerning infertility, on the whole it offers valuable insights by presenting childlessness as a type of life also blessed by God. Likewise, the language of the church since Vatican II has done away with the hierarchical view of the ends of marriage (or the idea that procreation is the primary goal of marriage over and against the unity of the spouses). Aquinas teaches us about the true nature of marriage and the value of childlessness. In addition, Aquinas’ understanding of love helps articulate areas that could guide infertile individuals and childless couples, on the one hand, and Christian communities, on the other hand, who have to deal with childless members.

The present study examined the relationship between dyadic interaction patterns and implicit theories of relationships (ITRs; deeply held beliefs about the nature of relationships) using a sample of N = 104 couples. We hypothesised that destiny beliefs would predict greater avoidance in conflict interactions, while growth beliefs would predict more constructive communication. Surprisingly, the results of the current study challenge the existing literature by indicating that neither destiny nor growth beliefs predict constructive communication or mutual avoidance for the couple. Further, while destiny beliefs were related to increased withdrawal in a demand-withdraw pattern, growth beliefs related to both demand and withdraw in a demand-withdraw pattern. These findings suggest that assessing the relationship between ITRs and communication patterns at the couple level introduces complexity that is underexplored in the current literature on implicit theories of relationships.

Our ability to interact appropriately in everyday interpersonal situations is fundamental to successful social integration. Impaired pragmatic competence correlates significantly and substantially with indices of social function across several domains for adults with acquired neurological disorders. In particular, evidence supports the negative impact of pragmatic impairments on the development and maintenance of relationships and community integration more generally.

Pragmatic language competence sits in a complex, multifactorial space characterised by interacting associations with cognitive and psychological functions and social and environmental parameters. This complexity is evident in much of the research seeking to unravel the nature and magnitude of interactions between pragmatic language competence and social outcomes in adults with acquired neurological disorders.

Over recent years our understanding of the impact of pragmatic impairments on social outcome has benefited substantially from inclusion of the insider's perspective in our research evidence base. Indeed, a methodological inclusion of constructivist paradigms has enabled the development of a rich understanding of the devastating social impact of impaired pragmatic competence.

The aim of this paper is to review pragmatic language impairment in the context of traumatic brain injury (TBI) and detail its impact on social functioning from the perspectives of people with TBI and their intimate partners/spouses and friends. With these perspectives as background, the paper concludes with consideration of therapeutic developments and a brief look at a novel intervention designed to reduce the negative impact of pragmatic deficits and improve functional language use following TBI.