What is companionate love?
- According to psychologist Robert Sternberg’s triangular theory of love, all forms of love are based on the interactions between three equal legs of a triangle: intimacy, commitment, and passion.
Companionate love is intimacy and commitment with little passion. It is a calm and warm love. Although it is not necessarily the ideal, it can sustain long-term, loving romantic relationships. Companionate love is considered much more stable than passionate love.
Many couples go through a period of companionate love when they become new parents or go through other major life changes. Likewise, older couples with a shared lifetime of memories often live out their golden years in contented companionate love.
For most people, though, passion is a major drive, and relationships that lack it are at risk for one or both partners straying. Fortunately, passion can be rebuilt with a bit of hard work, through shared novel or intense experiences.
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