Considers friendships and more intimate relationships including why we need them, how they are formed, what we get out of them and the stages through which they go.

Part 1.Types of Relationships. Introduction. Research on Interpersonal Relationships. Types of Relationships. Summary. Part 2. Types of Love. The Basic Distinction: Companionate and Passionate Love. Rubin's Model of Liking and Loving. Sternberg's Triangle of Love. Lee's Six Styles of Loving. Types of Love and Attachment Styles. Summary. Part 3. Factors Determining Relationship Formation. Proximity. Similarity. Physical Attraction. Reciprocal Liking. Complementarity. Competence. Summary. Part 4.Theories of Interpersonal Attraction. Learning theory. Social Exchange theory. Equity theory. Sociobiology. Summary. Part 5. The Maintenance and Course of Relationships. Stage and Filter Models. Evaluation of Filter and Stage theories. Summary. Part 6.The Dissolution of Relationships. Conflicts in Relationships. Duck's Model of Relationship Dissolution. Rusbult and Zembrodt's Model of Responses to Relationship Dissatisfaction. Concluding Comments. Summary. Part 7.Components and Effects of Relationships. Components of Relationships: Self-Disclosure. Components of Relationships: Rules. Components of Relationships: Power. Health and Happiness. Summary. Part 8.Individual, Social and Cultural Variations in Relationships. Homosexual Relationships. Gender Differences In Same-sex Friendships. Cross-Cultural Differences In Heterosexual Relationships. Summary. Part 9. Study Aids. Improving Your Essay Writing Skills. Key Research Summary. Glossary. Bibliography. Index.