Invited Program Overview: Research on relationships as a prelude to action

Recently, leading scholars have raised serious concerns about the integrity and viability of research on personal relationships. These concerns include a lack of descriptive research, a lack of integration in research findings, neglect of ethnically and culturally diverse people and their relationships, inadequacies in sampling, and the absence of interdisciplinary research. In this article, I argue that progress in resolving these problems can be made, and the relevance and rigor of our discipline can be enhanced, by greater emphasis on research that aims to improve personal relationships. Five advantages that would accrue from such an emphasis are outlined, and three studies illustrating a problem-oriented approach to relationships are presented. A discipline devoted to the scientific study of interpersonal functioning is uniquely positioned to address a vast array of problems that arise within and impinge upon personal relationships. Failure to pursue the applied potential of our work will represent a lost opportunity to develop and demonstrate our expertise in this domain and to bring about desirable social change.