Critical Observation: Marital Conflicts In obse

In observing older members of my family, I have become aware of the martial conflicts of an aunt and uncle, a couple who have been married to one another for over thirty years and whose marriage is characterized by other family members as ôdysfunctional.ö This brief essay will describe the behavior of this couple and its effects. The essay will also discuss how the study of social psychology and observational research methods could be useful in learning more about the kinds of behavior that were observed in the couple.

The couple, ôBobö and Mary,ö appear to have little on common despite a three-decade-long marriage and having raised three children; they currently have six grandchildren as well. The couple are both given to public fighting, particularly when they are consuming alcoholic beverages. Bob has been accused by Mary of wife beating, of frequent infidelity and of indifference. Mary has been accused (also publicly0 of being irrational, spending too much money on foolish things, of lying, and of ônagging.ö As Baron and Byrne (2000) have pointed out, this is a couple for whom public displays of anger and animosity are a means of communication. Indeed, there have been few family gatherings (many occurring at holidays) when Bob and MaryÆs public displays of temper have not disrupted the dayÆs events.

In observing Bob and Mary over time, it has become clear that they are very different individuals with different needs,

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Some common words found in the essay are:
Baron Byrne, Bob Mary, Marital Conflicts, Bob MaryÆs, byrne 2000, baron byrne 2000, baron byrne, bob mary, observational research, Bacon Coleman, References Bailey, social psychology, couple public, bailey 1990, public displays, coleman 1990, physical abuse, Scott Foresman, observing bob mary,
Approximate Word count = 917
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page)