I am a social psychologist at Illinois State University. My primary appointment is in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, but I also have a joint appointment in the Department of Psychology. My major research interests focus on issues related to PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS (romantic pairs, friendships, social networks). I have also conducted research on young adult (premarital) sexuality. Courses that I teach at ISU include: Social Psychology (Soc 223), Senior Experience (Soc 300), Personal Relationships (Soc 265), and a graduate seminar on Personal Relationships/Family (Soc 469). I received my Ph.D. in Sociology in 1985 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
This portrait of sexuality in close relationships presents an extensive examination of current theory and research. Contributors pay particular attention to sexual attitudes, behaviour, satisfaction and coercion, and discuss sexual patterns in several types of sexual relationship: dating, cohabiting, marital and homosexual. They show how sexual aspects of these relationships are related to other characteristics such as love and communication. Drawing material from a variety of disciplines, including psychology, sociology, communication and family studies, the volume also explores sexual standards, predictors of sexual attraction, sexual scripts, the initiation of sex and negotiating safe-sex behaviours.
