ABSTRACT
During the throes of conflict, it may be difficult to recognize how we could have communicated our message more constructively or how our roles in marital and family relationships influence how we make sense of disagreements. This chapter explores how words and meanings are communicated and, at times, ineffectively conveyed, in addition to the dimensions of power through which marriage and family relationships and discourse are arranged. The chapter also discusses the means through which relationships can retain their resiliency despite the inevitability of conflict. Diversity perspectives on power in same-sex committed relationships and global attitudes on gender, marriage, and work are also discussed.
