Reconcilable Differences, First Edition

Every couple has arguments, but what happens when recurring battles begin to feel like full-scale war? Do you retreat in hurt and angry silence, hoping that a spouse who "just doesn't get it" will eventually see things your way? Spend the time between skirmishes gathering evidence that you're right? Demand some immediate changes--or else? Whether due to innate personality traits or emotional vulnerabilities, there are some aspects of our behavior that are difficult to alter. But these differences do not have to get in the way of healthy, happy, and long-lasting romance. This practical guide offers new solutions for couples frustrated by continual attempts to make each other change. Aided by thought-provoking exercises and lots of real-life examples, readers will learn why they keep having the same fights again and again; how to keep small incompatibilities from causing big problems; and how true acceptance can restore health to their relationships.

Winner--Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies Self-Help Seal of Merit

Andrew Christensen, PhD, is Professor of Psychology at the University of California, Los Angeles. He has published widely on couple conflict and couple therapy. With Neil Jacobson, Dr. Christensen developed a treatment program for couples called Integrative Couple Therapy. Reconcilable Differences is a couples' guide to their approach. Currently, Dr. Christensen is directing a research study at UCLA and the University of Washington, sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health, which examines the outcome of two important approaches to couple therapy, including Integrative Couple Therapy. This is the largest study to date of the effectiveness of marital therapy.

Neil S. Jacobson, PhD, was Professor of Psychology at the University of Washington until his death in 1999. One of the most widely cited family therapists in the world, he was author of 200 articles and 9 books. His contributions to the fields of family therapy and mental health were recognized by prestigious research awards from the American Family Therapy Academy, the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, and the National Institutes of Health.