1
Interpersonal Relationships is designed to help you grow and develop,
strengthening both knowledge and skills so that you can build and maintain
strong and healthy relationships with multiple groups of people through-
out your life. Healthy relationships with others will help you experience a
quality of life that contributes to your well-being. This is true whether those
personal relationships are with members in the immediate family, other
relatives, friends, or others in the community. Relationship skills also can
impact success in the workplace, as you relate to coworkers and colleagues,
bosses and supervisors, customers and clients, or employees. Thus, the ben-
efi ts of studying Interpersonal Relationships include understanding and
skills that can be applied throughout your life.
Personal growth to maturity establishes a strong foundation for healthy
interpersonal relationships. This foundation includes understanding and
accepting who you are; taking steps to mature and reach your potential;
learning to set goals and make good decisions, whether alone or in a group;
communicating clearly and effectively in various settings; and developing
skills for solving problems and resolving confl icts. Skills for developing
healthy relationships apply to friendships with peers, romantic relation-
ships, spousal relationships, parent-child relationships, and relationships
with others in your community. These skills also can impact success as you
participate in the workforce, both as a team member and as a team leader.
Interpersonal Relationships can also help you develop lifelong skills for
managing areas of your life. With help from this text, you can acquire the
skills needed for adjusting to change, choosing and building a successful
career, managing stress, responding to crises, meeting the relational and
fi nancial challenges of daily living, and balancing the demands of various
family and career roles. All of these skills will help you build, maintain, and
manage the diverse relationships and experiences you will encounter.
Introduction
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