DU Professors Howard Markman and Scott Stanley, along with Susan Blumberg, director of Interpersonal Communication Options in Denver, have published the newest edition of Fighting for Your Marriage (Jossey-Bass, May 2010). The book, first published in 1994 and revised in 2001, is updated to reflect significant changes in marriage and romantic relationships in the past nine years.
“Today, marriages require more skill in communication, conflict management, and negotiation between partners than ever before, because there is less that is automatically accepted and more that needs to be decided,” write the authors.
Markman and Stanley, who co-direct DU’s Center for Marital and Family Studies, say couples need to be better at conflict management today than a decade ago.
“Instead of just fighting about money or how frequently to have sex, couples are also fighting about time spent of Facebook or whether it’s OK to send a text during a romantic dinner or bring a laptop on a getaway weekend,” Markman says.
Regardless of modern challenges, the authors believe a happy and successful marriage is attainable. The book includes information based on the latest professional research and includes a DVD showing real couples learning how to improve their marriages under the guidance of the experts.