Sound Relationship House principles
Gottman lays out seven practices, from building love maps to creating shared meaning, that predict marital stability. The set is grounded in decades of observing couples in his lab.
The seven principles for making marriage work
3 ideas
The Four Horsemen of divorce
Criticism, contempt, defensiveness, and stonewalling reliably forecast relationship breakdown. Contempt is the single strongest predictor of divorce.
Repair attempts matter more than conflict
Happy couples still argue, but they de-escalate with humor, affection, and repair bids. The ability to reconnect during friction, not its absence, sustains the marriage.