This class is LIFECHANGING! Karney has more charisma than any professor I have ever known, and he deeply cares about understanding relationships. His lectures provide clarity, advice, and introspection for anyone who is in/will enter an intimate relationship!! I've read that people think his exams are very tough, but honestly, the book is an easy read and as long as you read it once -- you will be more than fine! There will be a link in the syllabus which provides textbook summary/quizzes for each chapter and they are HUGELY helpful (seriously, do them). The paper is really easy too, nearly everyone gets full credit. I highly recommend this class :)

I took Karney for both 135 and 137, and he is the most energetic lecturer I have ever had. His "Alright: Let's get started!" at the beginning of lecture has become something of a UCLA legend.

The concepts he covers in lecture are very easy to to understand, and his lectures are all organized and entertaining. That being said, the 135 book he uses is MUCH easier to study from than the 137C book (even though he wrote it). The Intimate Relationships book is just paragraphs of text with a few key terms bolded, nonspecific summaries, and it reads like a book. You're going to be asked to remember names and definitions of different concepts, and the 137 book isn't built for reviewing the way that the 135 book is.

His tests are also incredibly nitpicky, when they count. I can guarantee that at least four questions on each test will be about throwaway details that you wouldn't remember to review, though the other questions are pretty straightforward. He doesn't curve, but instead sets very high standards for grades: 93+ is an A, 90-92 is an A-, 86-89 is a B+, etc...And while the numbers look fair, this actually means that if you miss a total of 6 problems on his tests and write a great paper (e.g., 28/30, which is what most people get), you'll still land an A-.

That being said, you should easily be able to get at least a B in his class, and his lectures are great. Just remember that the tests are not as easy as the concepts are.

Karney was one of the best professors ive ever had in my life. Classes were podcasted but lecture was so much better. The lectures were engaging and karney always had enriching anecdotes to add to the topics we were discussing. The textbook that was required was written by karney himself and its a very easy read. it is as interesting and fun as karney himself. The textbook is also extremely useful, karney often says if you want to pass the class then read the book, and hes right. All his slides basically sum up key concepts in the book. so the book is very beneficial and worth the money, I ended up splitting the price to rent a book with a friend of mine so it was pretty affordable. The tests are very straightforward. The questions aren't meant to be trick questions, so if you know the answer you know the answer. Really study the slides and the parts in the book not discussed in class. The grade for the class is not curved and it consists of the first midterm, the second midterm, and a short paper. The paper is very easy and interesting to do. Most people get A's on the paper, as long as you follow the directions. All in all this was one of the best classes i have ever taken. the topic is extremely interesting and reveling. Plus its a complicated topic that everyone has thought of at least once. Karney leaves you excited for next lecture, and also makes you feel heard. If you ask a question in class, he'll ask for your name and then memorize it. That way he can call on you by name next time you have a question. I highly recommend everyone take this class

Professor Karney is extremely nice and an amazing, passionate lecturer who is very knowledgeable about Intimate Relationships. He is also very willing to help others for those who come to office hours. However, the exams (two multiple choice exams in the Summer) are very hard and require a lot of reading and studying (worth 45 percent and 55 percent). I messed up a bit in my first exam and studied my ass off for the final to get my A-. I recommend taking the class just for Professor Karney and his charisma and personality but would raise caution about grading as the average grade for the class was a B- to B and requires a lot of reading and studying.

Amazing professor, although I never came to class (it was my only class on the days I had it, and I didn't see a point in going when it was Bruincasted) I genuinely looked forward to hearing his lectures. He can make 1 hour and 15 mins feel like it's going way faster just because he is so enthusiastic, and is a funny guy. I wasn't that particularly interested in the topic before coming into this class, but he made me interested in it, and relationships are obviously something that are relevant to everyone's life.
So the biggest thing about this class is you have to be a good exam taker to succeed. There is no extra credit offered, and 80% of your grade is based on exams (one midterm, one non-cumulative final). You also have to read the book, and absorb most of the material from it. There's a lot of stuff but he wrote the book in a way that is interesting, so it doesn't read like a traditional psych textbook. I was able to get a 100 on both exams w/o taking any notes, I just read the chapters over and over again about a week before the exams, and rehearsed material that I thought was gonna be on the exam. Prioritize on things mentioned in lecture, use that as a guide to know what to focus on when reading the book. There's gonna be stuff that isn't mentioned in lecture that is in the text, but I'd say at least 80% (probably more) of the exam questions were based on material that was mentioned in lecture + the book. Some reviewers say you have to know obscure details in the readings, but I did not find that to be the case. There wasn't one question about something he briefly mentioned, almost all the questions had to do w/ a large section in the book.
Also, he warns you the exams are hard but I did not find that to be the case. I found very few questions where I needed to take a 50/50 guess on, if you just memorized most of the important concepts for each chapter you should do well on the exams. The questions aren't even close to the level of psych 100b difficulty, very few trick questions, if any.
The essay is very easy, pretty much easy points. Consult the TA if you have any questions, but honestly if you put any effort into it you should be able to get full or near full credit on it. You really wanna make sure you do well on the paper since there is no extra credit, so if you're shooting for an A you don't have much room for error.
Overall, I wish Karney taught more classes because I found his class to be entertaining. The only downside is you have to read a lot, and I've never been much of a reader. Also you can only miss a handful of questions on the exams to get an A, so that was another downside. But the pros outweigh the cons imo. If you need a psych class you should take his class, if it's available. But if you're looking for an elective, this may not be the class for you, since you're certainly going to have to work for that A

Oh my gosh, where to start... I loved this class with all my heart. Karney is an AMAZING lecturer and you can tell he is extremely passionate and knowledgeable about intimate relationships, which is a topic that we all tackle with without even being aware of it! I wish a million times that I got to experience his lectures live rather than remotely... I just know they would've been even better in person. However, even through the screen, I was so engaged with his lectures as the topic genuinely interested me and I could apply it to my everyday life and make sense out of the intimate relationships that we will deal with until we die. Oh and I almost forgot to mention that he is absolutely HILARIOUS!

I will always use the information from this class for the rest of my life, and the textbook was very well written and incredibly fun to read! It was written by the professor himself, so it matches his teaching style which helps incorporate lectures and text. I read everything from beginning to end, and it was definitely worth it and I highly recommend that everyone read the book for a thorough, deeper understanding of their relationships. Great course, great professor, perfect way to end my journey at UCLA. Thank you, Professor Karney. Keep being you!

This class was very interesting and it's too bad that I wasn't able to take it in person. Professor Karney is very engaging and is clearly passionate about the material. The only downside was that he recylced his Bruincasted lectures from last spring so there was a bit of a disconnect there. Other than that, I found each topic within the course to be very relevant and applicable. The short paper was adjusted to involve discussing how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected intimate relationships, nothing too bad. The exams are pretty tricky and were a bit specific so be sure to read the textbook bc there's almost no way to pass without having read it. Overall a great class and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking to learn about a fascinating subject!

This class is great. Although, I advise you to not take this class during the summer session along with another course. I barely got through the lectures and missed many chapters of the reading due to demands of other courses and responsibilities.

The professor is fun and engaging, but there is ALOT of reading and the expectation that you read the entire book in order to do well on the exams. Anything in the textbook and lecture is fair game in the exams. Two midterms, each 50 questions, 75 minutes to complete.

Some questions are straightforward, some are common sense, and others are tricky enough to confuse you. He literally squeezes a 10-week course into 6 weeks, making it VERY EASY to fall behind, so KEEP UP!

Although I got a B in the course, I switched the grading to P/NP so that I could keep my GPA up. Definitely a class worth taking during a 10 week quarter, not during the summer.

This was the best class I’ve taken at UCLA. I wish every professor was as passionate and animated as Karney. His lectures are easy to follow because he’s so engaging. If you want to get an A, you will definitely have to read since the lectures supplement the textbook and help reinforce the material. If you find a friend and split the readings and share notes, you can still do well though.

I loved this class. The only thing is is that you DO need to read the textbook to do well on the exams. I was able to get As on the midterm and final by just reading the textbook without taking any notes on it (since it is a lot of reading) and watching lectures. The paper is easy but the instructions are really specific and you NEED to follow it. I got marked off 4 points which brought my grade down so be careful. Other then that, the material was so interesting to learn and the textbook wasn't a hard read at all.