Valentine’s Day is approaching, a date where couples express their love and affection. In truth, loving relationships are a very important part of any person’s life. That’s why we thought you might be interested in briefly reading the results of these 10 investigations about love and couples.
1. Falling in love takes a fifth of a second
Take it so that the chemicals that induce euphoria begin to act in the brain when you are looking at that special person.
Brain imaging studies suggest that 12 different areas of the brain are involved. When you look at or think about your loved one, these areas release a cocktail of neurotransmitters in the brain, including oxytocin, dopamine, adrenaline, and vasopressin.
The brain gets a feeling from love similar to that of a small dose of cocaine
The brain gets a feeling from love similar to that of a small dose of cocaine.
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2. Brain map of love and desire
When looking at the neural differences between love and sexual desire, he finds notable coincidences and marked differences.
The activated regions were those involved in emotions, motivation and high-level thoughts.
This discovery suggests that sexual desire is more than just a basic emotion as it requires goal-directed motivation and more advanced thoughts.
Love is built on these circuits, with the difference being a key area found in the striatum. This area of the brain is usually related to the balance between high and low levels of functions.
3. Kissing helps us decide
Two have found that, apart from being sexy, kissing also helps people choose partners and stay with them.
In one survey, women in particular rated kissing as important, but more promiscuous members of both sexes rated it as a very important way to evaluate a new partner.
Kissing has a role in maintaining the relationship
But kissing isn’t just important at the beginning of a relationship; It also has a role in its maintenance.
Researchers found a correlation between the amount of kissing couples who had been together for a long time and the quality of their relationship.
4. Couples look more alike after 25 years of being together
found that after 25 years of marriage, couples’ facial features become more similar, in the opinion of independent observers.
This may be due to diet, environment, personality, or even as a result of empathizing with your partner over the years.
5. Long distance relationships can work
Contrary to popular belief, long-distance relationships can work according to a .
Two factors that help long-distance relationships stay alive are that these couples:
- They trust each other with more intimate information.
- They have a more idealized vision of the other.
As a result, those people who are in a long-distance relationship tend to have similar levels of relationship satisfaction and stability as those who are geographically closer.
6. Four things that kill a relationship
For more than 40 years, psychologist John Gottman has been analyzing relationships, both good and bad. He has followed couples for decades in many psychological studies to see what kinds of behaviors might predict whether they will stay together.
According to their studies, these are 4 things that kill relationships: repetitive criticism, many expressions of contempt such as sarcasm, being defensive and closed, which is when communication almost completely shuts down.
7. Modern marriages demand personal fulfillment
The face of marriage has changed significantly over the years, according to a .
It used to be about providing security and solidity, now people want psychological fulfillment for their marriages. More than ever people expect marriage to be more of a journey toward personal fulfillment and self-actualization.
Simple Acts of Kindness Are Often the Most Appreciated
Unfortunately, in the face of these demands, couples are not investing enough time and effort to achieve this development.
Study author Eli Finkel explains:
“In general, if you want your marriage to help you achieve self-expression and personal development, it is crucial that you invest sufficient time and energy in the marriage. If you know that time and energy are not available, then it makes sense to adjust your expectations accordingly to minimize disappointment.”
8. A simple exercise to save a marriage
One found that divorce rates were cut in half just by watching movies about relationships and discussing them afterwards.
The study’s lead author, Ronald Rogge, said:
“The results suggest that husbands and wives have a very good sense of what they might be doing right and wrong in their relationships. Consequently, you may not need to teach him many skills to cut divorce rates.
Maybe you just need to get them to think about how they are currently behaving.”
9. The post-divorce relationship
Even after divorce, relationships don’t necessarily end, especially if there are children.
One has found that it could end in one of five ways:
- Dissolved duos, where it is usually the father who disappears.
- Perfect friends, meaning that parents continue to be best friends.
- Cooperative colleagues, which is when couples move away but remain on good terms with each other.
- Angry associates, who are those who continue to fight after the divorce.
- Enemies to the death, where children become hostages in fights and usually suffer as a result of this.
10. It’s the little things
Finally, as we live in a highly commercialized world where we are encouraged to think that love can be bought and sold, it is worth remembering that many times it is the little things that can make a difference.
A survey of almost 4,000 English adults found that simple acts of kindness are often the most appreciated.
Bringing your partner a cup of tea in bed, taking out the trash, or telling them they look nice could do more than a box of chocolates or a bouquet of flowers (although no one mind receiving those things either!).
Some of these data show us that you don’t even have to complicate things to improve the relationship, a kind word every day, a shared movie, trying the famous communication, a kiss… all of this can help a lot.
Fountain: