Examines relationships of idiomatic communication (including words, phrases, or nonverbal signs) to the interpersonal sentiments of 100 romantically involved heterosexual couples. Finds that loving, commitment, and closeness correlated with the number of idioms expressing affection and referring to sexual matters. Notes that males invented idioms…

Inability to hear or understand the male voice of intimacy creates difficulty in relationships. Listening to relational dialogues of intimacy based on feminine relational strengths may preclude understanding or hearing males voices. Reviews special issue of the "Journal of Mental Health Counseling" on counseling men, concluding with several…

Asked 15 couples who had been married at least 30 years to give their perceptions of qualities that had sustained their relationship in times of closeness and relational strain. Key characteristics identified were intimacy balanced with autonomy, commitment, communication, religious orientation, and congruent perceptions of the relationship.…

Nonsmoking females (n=270) observed videotaped interview in design that crossed three levels of intensity of counselor smoking, three levels of client presenting problem intimacy, and two female counselors. No interactions were observed, but counselor smoking exerted negative impact on participants' impressions of counselor characteristics and…

Examined patterns of psychosocial development for white and African-American traditional-age undergraduate female college students (n=218). Differences were found by class level in measures of autonomy with seniors scoring higher than other classes and mature interpersonal relationship scores indicating a gradual increase. In a measurement of…

Proposes a perspective for understanding the development of adolescent sexual intimacy. Describes a "transitional stage" in which adolescents, driven by developmental needs, experiment with sexual behaviors, and which results in the ability to achieve "relational" sexual intimacy when completed. Discusses problems and implications for counseling…

Study of college women (n=131) at midwestern university found significant effects of an unwanted childhood sexual experience on subsequent psychosocial tasks of intimacy and career planning. In addition, victims of incestuous, adult perpetrators, who encountered experiences of greater severity, reported greatest number of negative developmental…

Analysis of female child sexual abuse (CSA) survivors showed relationship themes. The two most frequent were difficulties with emotional communication or intimacy and polarized positions on control. Whereas these themes were correlated with survivors' CSA characteristics, sexual difficulties were correlated with survivors' level of current…

A study compared sociosexual attitudes of 31 adults with developmental disability, 15 with autism, and 16 with mental retardation, and 25 typical Canadians and 28 Americans. Most differences were contributed by the individuals with mental retardation who endorsed significantly fewer than 50% of sexual activities presented. (Author/CR)

Addresses the relationship between intimacy and communication that is based on computer technology. Discusses definitions of intimacy and the nature of intimate conversations that use computers as a communications medium. Explores implications for counseling. (MKA)

Examined the social goals and beliefs involved in adolescent peer relationships among 266 ninth-grade students. Factor analysis of questionnaire responses identified relevant goals (intimacy, nurturance, dominance, leadership, popularity, and avoidance) and beliefs (sincerity, status, responsibility, caring, entertaining, and toughness) concerning…

Examines reactions of 531 undergraduate men and women to scenarios depicting nonconsensual heterosexual intercourse involving varying levels of prior intimacy. Responses show women were most likely to find the scenarios unacceptable; gender differences increased with higher levels of prior intimacy between victim and offender. Knowing a rape…

In this article, the authors explore the creative and expressive arts, specifically "memoirs of loss" as a healing resource that both engenders hope and love and meaning-filled care, and emancipatory and humanist popular education. The authors present some key definitions and the general background to this article's creation. Then, they…

This article contrasts two stories of nineteenth-century interracial romance, the Mexican borderlands legend of Lola Casanova and the U.S. borderlands novel "Ramona." It argues that the Casanova legend suggests Mexican attitudes toward interracial marriage that differ significantly from those understood in recent readings of…

This paper derives from research that had the aim of understanding more about adolescents' views of sex education and adolescent sexuality. The data are taken from three separate pieces of research conducted in 1984, 1998 and 2003. This paper presents data about gender, information and knowledge relating to sexuality. It seeks to demonstrate that…