Power Of Love And Relationships

Power of Love and Relationships
What makes us attracted to some people while others go unnoticed? Is there a real choice that we have or is attraction based on a combination of good looks and similar backgrounds, what kind of childhood you had, or even the way someone smells. The truth is that friendships and romantic relationships may all come down to being in the right place at the right time.
We are more likely to become friends with people we are close to like co-workers and neighbors. This is because repeated exposure to people creates a greater liking of that person. Liking someone more over time is called the mere-exposure effect (Feenstra, (2011).
People have a tendency to associate their opinions of other people with their current mood. For example, if you meet someone at a comedy club you will likely associate that person with laughter and fun (Heffner, C. (2011).
Individuals are sometimes attracted by similarity. If two people learn that they both have the same opinion of something or someone that might result in attraction. We are attracted to people who share the same interests. A vegetarian would not likely be attracted to a big game hunter. We are far more likely to like someone who likes you back. If someone does not like us we will probably not like them back.
We are more likely to want to date someone or become friends with someone who is physically attractive. Physical attractiveness has no effect on established friendships, However there is less satisfaction in marriages if one partner is less attractive than the other (Feenstra, (2011). This could be the reason that individuals tend to have spouses of similar attractiveness.

Power of Love and Relationships
For both people in a friendship or relationsh...

... middle of paper ...

...cy, passion and decision/commitment. Intimacy is our closeness or attachment to the other person. Passion is a physical attraction and desire for the other person. Decision/commitment is the level of commitment that we have to another person. First we realize that we are “in love” then we commit to develop a lasting relationship with that person. Empty love is a relationship that is based only on commitment. An example of this would be staying in a marriage for the sake of the children. When all parts of the triangle are involved the love is said to be consummate love.
An individual’s attraction to another person is usually due to proximity. We usually choose to befriend people that we work with or neighbors. Although we can make friends outside of our circle, we are more likely to form our deepest relationships from being in the right place at the right time.