There is a significant amount of research that substantiates the connection between social support/relationships and the development, onset, and/or recovery of several physical diseases/illnesses. Research has shown, for example, that an unhappy marriage can increase the likelihood of becoming ill by 35% while stressful communication can lead to an increase in cardiovascular reactivity which in turn increases the risk of coronary heart disease and premature mortality. This volume provides a comprehensive overview of the influences of communication on physiology and physical health status occurring in a variety of contexts, from families, interpersonal relationships, and public speaking to sport fandom, affection, fear, and the escalation of conflict. It offers a broad and up-to-date review of the relevant literature in this area of study.

Contents: James M. Honeycutt/Brandon D. Bannon/Laura C. Hatcher: Effects of Positive Family: Conflict-Renewal Stories on Heart Rate – Charles H. Tardy: Cardiovascular Reactivity in Social Interaction: Predictors and Consequences of Physiological Changes While Speaking in Everyday Life – Chris R. Sawyer/ Ralph R. Behnke: Profiles of Response Stereotypy and Specificity for Public Speaking State Anxiety – James M. Honeycutt/Shaughan A. Keaton/Laura C. Hatcher/Dale Hample: Effects of Rumination and Observing Marital Conflict on Observers’ Heart Rates as They Advise and Predict the Use of Conflict Tactics – Shaughan A. Keaton/James M. Honeycutt: The Effects of Team Identity Formation and Sport Team Identification on Mental Health, Cognition, Behavior, and Physiology – Kory Floyd/Perry M. Pauley/Colin Hesse/Alice E. Veksler/Jen Eden/Alan C. Mikkelson: Affectionate Communication Is Associated with Markers of Immune and Cardiovascular System Competence – Mark A. Hamilton/Alice E. Veksler: Types of Stress and Their Effects on Mental Health, Verbal Aggression, and Assault – Alan D. Heisel: Asymmetry in the Brain: Communication, Personality, and Health – Andrew Faulkner/Kim Hellemans/Alfonso Abizaid/Amedeo D’Angiulli: The Neurophysiology of Craving and Drug-Related Cues: Evidence from Event-Related Potentials – Joseph LeDoux: Rethinking the Emotional Brain.