Chapter Introduction
| CHAPTER | 15 |
Close Relationships
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TOPIC OVERVIEW
What Makes Close Relationships Special
Parasocial Relationships
Why Are Close Relationships So Important?
This Thing Called Love
Romantic Love
Culture and Love
Theories of Romantic Love
Models of the Nature of Love
Cost-benefit Perspectives on Relationships
The Social Exchange Model
Equity Theory
Cultural and Historical Perspectives on Relationships
Cross-
cultural Differences in Romantic Commitment 
SOCIAL PSYCH OUT IN THE WORLD Historical Differences in Long- term Commitment Culture and Similarity in Friendship
The Time Course of Romantic Relationships
Self-
disclosure Rose-
colored Lenses? Adjusting to Interdependency
Marital Satisfaction?
When the Party’s Over…The Breakup
Are We All Doomed, Then?
Long-term Relationships: Understanding Those That Dissolve and Those That Thrive
Should I Stay or Should I Go?
Application: One Day at a Time: Dealing With Daily Hassles
And in the Red Corner: Managing Conflict
Booster Shots: Keeping the Relationship and Passion Alive
SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY AT THE MOVIES Husbands and Wives
Relationships come in all shapes and sizes, including casual acquaintanceships, life partners, and what can only be described using the label “It’s complicated,” popularized by Facebook. This chapter focuses on the world of close relationships: friendships, romantic relationships, love, sex, and marriage. We will first consider the value of close relationships. Then we will examine the nature and functions of love and consider basic models of romantic relationships and the roles of interdependency and commitment in both romantic relationships and friendships. We will then conclude this chapter, and indeed this book, by considering the time course of romantic relationships, sources of problems in romantic relationships, relationship dissolution, and strategies for optimizing satisfaction and longevity in relationships.