Couple Skills, Second Edition: Making Your Relationship Work

by Matthew McKay, Patrick Fanning, Kim Paleg

Love takes work, but, when it comes to relationships, it pays to work smarter. Couple Skills, Second Edition, revised and updated from the therapist-recommended classic, will teach you how to work smarter in your relationship. You'll learn to improve communication, cope better with problems, and resolve conflicts with the one you love in healthy and creative ways. Each chapter teaches you an essential skill that supports greater relationship satisfaction and deeper intimacy.

New to this edition is a chapter on using acceptance skills, developed from the revolutionary new acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT). These new approaches will help you to accept your partner's feelings (and your own emotions) without judgment. Using these techniques will help you decide what you really value in your relationship and then commit to acting in ways that further those values every day.

Audible Audio

Published October 29, 2018

About the author

Matthew McKay, PhD, is a professor of psychology at the Wright Institute in Berkeley, and author of more than 30 professional psychology and self-help books which have sold a combined total of more than 3 million copies. He is co-founder of independent self-help publisher, New Harbinger Publications. He was the clinical director of Haight Ashbury Psychological Services in San Francisco for twenty five years. He is current director of the Berkeley CBT Clinic. An accomplished novelist and poet, his poetry has appeared in two volumes from Plum Branch Press and in more than sixty literary magazines. His most recent novel, Wawona Hotel, was
published by Boaz Press in 2008.

Reviews

[Raul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Couple Skills offers an exceptionally grounded, practical roadmap for partners looking to rebuild trust, active listening, and emotional intimacy. The core content is wonderfully structured, providing actionable tools that can genuinely transform stagnant or defensive relational dynamics. If you are looking to restore healthy communication and break negative conflict loops, the insights here are both deeply empathetic and highly efficacious.

The audio performance itself is clear, well-paced, and easy to digest. However, the format presents a practical challenge: the book relies heavily on detailed worksheets, exercises, and reflective prompts. Pausing the audio to mentally work through multi-step exercises—or trying to take notes while driving or walking—can feel clunky.

While the audiobook serves as a fantastic overview and a great way to absorb the main concepts, having a physical copy (or hard-copy PDF) is vastly superior for actually doing the hands-on work. It remains a thoroughly worthwhile listen, but keep a notebook handy—or grab the paperback if you want to get the absolute most out of the exercises.