Menu
Professor
Lisa Neff’s current research focuses on marital relationships. Despite the strong feelings of love and commitment that characterize newlywed couples, many marriages end in disappointment. To understand this shift, her research aims: (1) to identify the relationship processes associated with positive marital outcomes (e.g., the influence of optimistic biases on marital well-being; the role of social support exchanges between partners) and (2) to understand how and when stressors external to the relationship (e.g., work stress, financial difficulties) hinder couples’ efforts to engage in relationship-promoting behaviors. To address these issues, Dr. Neff’s research utilizes daily diary, observational, and longitudinal methodologies.
Many people agree that maintaining satisfying close relationships is one of the most important goals in life. Yet, in today’s society, many people struggle to achieve this goal - in fact, the U.S. Surgeon General recently cited loneliness as the defining public health crisis of our time. Drawing from their research on how couples’ relationships change and develop over time, Drs. Lisa Neff and Marci Gleason, professors at the University of Texas at Austin, will discuss the best ways to nurture our connections with loved ones so that we can reap the mental and physical health benefits that those relationships provide.