Critically consider psychological explanations of love Essay

in that location argon three psychological theories of jockey, The tercet Factor Theory of wild-eyed Love, Sternbergs Triangular Theory of Love and Romantic Love and Attachment. The three means conjecture of romantic jockey suggested by Hatfield and Walster, recognises dickens types of lamb, loving passion and companionate make issue. Whilst exasperationate write out buttocks be seen as an intent physiologic input which involves a longing for the other psyche, companionate love is to a greater extent a feeling of ticker towards those whom we feel deeply ab place.Hatfield and Walster propose a possible action to explain passionate love based on three factors physiologic arousal, appropriate love object and heathenish exposure. The authors see love as a label that is placed on psyche that we ar physiologically aroused by. Experiencing this arousal volition cause a person to state it is because of love, since this is what our culture teaches us happens when w e are in love. This system receives support from query by Dutton and Aron. In this study, male participants were interviewed on a racy or misfortunate suspension bridge, by an attractive female.The results back up the prediction that those males interviewed on a high bridge mat up more inhering attraction to the woman, presumably because they experienced stronger physiological arousal. The males on the lower bridge felt less physical attraction, presumably because their physiological arousal was not as strong. It is manageable that this theory could explain certain experiences much(prenominal) as love at offset printing sight. However, since most concourse be to stemma in love gradually, this would suggest that for the bulk of respective(prenominal)s, the label, love, comes first off quite that the physiological arousal.The theory is also more applicable to westbound rather then eastern or collectivist cultures. Sternberg defines love as knowledge (sharing mutual understanding and emotional support), passion (involves physical attraction and sexual desire) and conclusiveness/commitment (involves the short-term decision that you love some matchless and a longer-term commitment to note that love). These three components of love can be combined in different ways to produce seven varieties of love liking, infatuation, clear love, romantic love, compassionate love, fatuous love and consummate love.These seven types of love cook a triangle. Consummate love creation in the center as it is the strongest deepen of love since it involves all three components. Sternberg believes that people have devil different types of triangle. The first is based on an individuals own theory of love and is formed in a cultural context from watching television, notice parents, reading books, including listening to fairy tales when young. The game triangle is based on the individuals genuine relationship. concord to Sternberg when two triangles are simila r, relationships lean to be more successful.The theory has unimaginative applications it is possible to measure the components in the two parties and then analyse the differences in the types of love shown by each partner. It helps pinpoint areas where change and compromise may be prerequisite. However, the components are rather vague, especially commitment, and it is therefore hard to judge the basis on which one person decides to love another. Hazan and tike proposed that romantic relationships are addition relationships, and that individual differences in adult accompaniment style, reflect those found by psychologists who studied attachment styles such as Ainsworth.So rather than love being formed in a cultural context, Hazan and youngster believe that love originates from a persons betimes relationship with a primary(a) caregiver. This theory developed out of two earlier pieces of enquiry by Ainsworth and Bowlby. Ainsworths strange situation and the musing that chil dren have three different styles of attachment secure, unsafe/anxious resistant and insecure/anxious avoidant. Bowlbys belief that the buzz offs behavior towards the child creates an internal working model that leads the infant to turn out the same in ulterior relationships.According to Hazan and tiddler, later love relationships can be predicted from a childs attachment style. So therefore a secure child who had a domineering image of a caring capture impart have relationships in later lifetime sentence that are friendly, trusting and more enduring. A child classified as insecure/anxious resistant will have conflicting memories of the mother, both supportive and rejecting, causing relationships in later life to consist of emotional highs and lows, with moments of jealousy and concerns whether their partners truly love them.Insecure/anxious avoidant children will remember their mother as refrigerant and rejecting and have relationships in later life where they fear be ing close to soul and believe love is not necessary for happiness nor is it long lasting. Hazan and Shavers research receives support from a number of studies in that there does seem to be a relationship among early attachment experiences and later attitudes and behaviour to love for example Feeny and Noller 1990. However the research has all been correlational in this area, so it cannot be claimed that early attachment causes later relationships behaviour.The relationship between the two could be caused by another factor. Kagon believes this other factor to be the temperament of the child. Infants are natural with certain temperaments which determine the quality of their early relationships and these innate or genetic factors make a motion relationships throughout life. The three psychological theories of love provide partial explanations for this most intense of human emotion. Whilst Hatfield and Walster believe love to be a state of strong physiological arousal, Sternberg and Hazan and Shaver believe that love originates from a persons early relationships with a primary caregiver.