This book provides a comprehensive overview of the many components of well-being and the many factors which can influence it. As opposed to the books which explore just a single component of it or the well-being of one group at one time in one culture, it begins by reviewing theories of the cognitive, emotional, and behavioral components of well-being, and variations in relationships, time, and cultures that can influence well-being. It emphasizes that positive and negative well-being often comes in reaction to needs being met or not being met, or perceived as being threatened. A primary means of meeting needs is by interacting with others, in single encounters or on-going relationships.

Part II presents new analyses of five studies that compare various types of relationship partners and singles, confirming that on average relationship partners often have higher well-being than singles. But many singles have high well-being, and some relationship partners have low well-being, with singles being more at risk of low well-being. Previous research has paid insufficient attention to the well-being of singles, who are an increasing percentage of adults. ****The final section provides an overview of the ways in which individuals, communities, therapists, and researchers can promote well-being.

Autorentext

Charles T. Hill is Professor of Psychology at Whittier College, California, USA, where he won the Nerhood Teaching Excellence Award. He has a PhD in Social Psychology from Harvard University, an M. A. in Sociology and an M. S. in physics from the University of Washington, and a B. A. in Physics from the Honors College at the University of Oregon. He is member of the American Psychological Association, the American Sociological Association, and the International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology.

K. Bahar Aydin is Associate Professor of Psychology at Ankara Yildirim Beyazit University, Türkiye. She has a PhD in Counseling Psychology from the University of Ankara, Türkiye, and was a research scholar at Georgia State University, USA. She has founded Singles Counseling Theory (2017). She is founder and president of the Singles Counseling Association, and she is a member of the International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology.

Inhalt

1. INTRODUCTION: Why was this book written?.- PART I - THEORETICAL APPROACHES TO WELL-BEING.- 2. What are the components of well-being?.- 3. How are human needs relevant to well-being?.- 4. How are relationships relevant to well-being?.- 5. How are cultures relevant to well-being?.- 6. How is time relevant well-being?.- PART II - COMPARISONS OF ROMANTIC PARTNERS AND SINGLES.- 7. What statistics are used in the analyses?.- 8. The Boston Couples Study and its follow-ups.- 9. The Multiple Identities Study.- 10. The Intimate Relationships Across Cultures Study.- 11. The Importance of Possessions Study.- 12. The Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic Study.- PART III - WAYS OF PROMOTING WELL-BEING.- 13. How can individuals promote well-being?.- 14. How can communities promote well-being?.- 15. How can therapists promote well-being?.- 16. How can researchers promote well-being?.