The Sexual Bond: Rethinking Families and Close Relationships (SAGE Library of Social Research)

The Sexual Bond addresses different ways of thinking about families, marriages, and close relationships. Maintaining that society has shifted toward new forms of family relationships, the authors contend that family researchers need to go beyond traditional definitions and learn to work in terms of close or primary relationships rather than `families′.

First addressing the rationale for this shift in thinking, they then present their major theoretical assumptions, including their reliance on a dynamic version of systems theory. They then identify the sexually bonded primary relationship, distinguishing it from those based on ties of blood or friendship and discuss how recent changes in definitions of sexuality fit within their model. The authors consider the issue of the development of the relationship and its influence with the environment and look at the impact of women′s work on primary relationships.