Robert Sternberg's Triangular Theory Of Love

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Some people may think that love is a simple emotion that we all feel, but is it really? Love is a subject that many scientists and specialists have done large amounts of research on and something that they are still researching today. Love is a psychological concept and as humans grow, our minds and the way that we think changes. There is one theory that cuts the concept of love into three main parts. This theory was developed by Robert Sternberg and is called the Triangular Theory of Love (Hock, 2016). This theory cuts the concept of love into three main concepts: Intimacy, Commitment, and Passion. All three of these main points together is what Sternberg calls Consummate Love, which is the most complete form of love two people can possess. …show more content…

As mentioned in Human Sexuality by Roger R. Hock, “Imagine that you love someone with whom you have not yet established any intimacy and no real passion exists between you (Hock, 2016.)” This is an example of having commitment, but lacking the other two main concepts of Sternberg’s Triangular Theory of Love. Commitment can be combined with intimacy, which is called Companionate Love. This combination is missing the passion, which means that the relationship is missing the heat, or desire. A relationship could last without passion, but it wouldn’t have any arousal to it. It would be a bland relationship without much passion in …show more content…

Consummate Love is the combination of passion, intimacy, and commitment. It’s what Sternberg applies as the perfect combination of all three main concepts of his Triangular Theory of Love. Not all couple may be apply to get consummate love at first, but with time and effort one can achieve this. However, the same effort must be maintained otherwise the consummate love can fade away over time. When a couple achieves consummate love, both partners are at the perfect level of comfort with each other. It’s also when both partners have good amounts of energy, trust, and compassion in their relationship. It’s like being in the middle of the

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