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A triangular theory of love.
Abstract
This article presents a triangular theory of love. According the theory, has three components: (a) intimacy, which encompasses the feelings of closeness, connectedness, and bondedness one experiences in loving relationships; (b) passion, which encompasses the drives that lead romance, physical attraction, and sexual consummation; and (c) decision/commitment, which encompasses, in the short term, the decision that one loves another, and in the long term, the commitment maintain that love. The amount of one experiences depends on the absolute strength of these three components, and the kind of one experiences depends on their strengths relative each other. The three components interact with each other and with the actions that they produce and that produce them so as form a number of different kinds of loving experiences. The triangular theory of subsumes certain other theories and can account for a number of empirical findings in the research literature, as well as for a number of experiences with which many are familiar firsthand. It is proposed that the triangular theory provides a rather comprehensive basis for understanding many aspects of the that underlies close relationships. What does it mean to love someone? Does it always mean the same thing, and if not, in what ways do loves differ from each other? Why do certain loves seem last, whereas others disappear almost as quickly as they are formed? This article seeks answer these and other questions through a triangular theory of love. This tripartite theory deals both with the nature of and with loves in various kinds of relationships. The presentation of the theory will be divided into three main parts. In the first part, the main tenets of the theory will be explained and discussed, and the theory will be compared with other theories of love. In the second part, the implications of the theory for close relationships and satisfaction in them will be described. In the third part, the theory will be shown account for many of the empirical phenomena that have been observed with regard love.
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“Sternberg (1986Sternberg ( , 1988) ) synthesizes previous attempts and defines love according to three constituent components: intimacy, passion, and commitment.”
From Strengthening Customer Loyalty through Intimacy and Passion: Roles of Customer–Firm Affection and Customer–Staff Relationships in Services (2008) · cites this paper as Sternberg 1986
In the citing paper
“Second, Sternberg's (1986) triangular theory of love and its constituent components apply to exemplary services on the transactional-relational continuum.”
From Strengthening Customer Loyalty through Intimacy and Passion: Roles of Customer–Firm Affection and Customer–Staff Relationships in Services (2008) · cites this paper as Sternberg (1986)
In the citing paper
“These three components are believed to be essential in forming and sustaining romantic relationships (Sternberg, 1986;Hatfield et al., 1988;Sternberg, 1997).”
From I love you, my AI companion! Do you? Perspectives from the Triangular Theory of Love and Attachment Theory (2026) · cites this paper as Sternberg, 1986
In the citing paper
“The Triangular Theory of Love has been widely accepted and adopted, due to its robustness and universality, across relationships of different natures (Sternberg, 1986).”
From I love you, my AI companion! Do you? Perspectives from the Triangular Theory of Love and Attachment Theory (2026) · cites this paper as Sternberg, 1986
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Using the theory of planned behaviour to understand brand love
Hegner, S. M., Fenko, A., & Teravest, A. (2017) · Journal of Product & Brand Management · doi:10.1108/jpbm-06-2016-1215 · Cited by 208
Truly, Madly, Deeply: Consumers in the Throes of Material Possession Love
Lastovicka, J. L., & Sirianni, N. J. (2011) · Journal of Consumer Research · doi:10.1086/658338 · Cited by 207
“My Roomba Is Rambo”: Intimate Home Appliances
Sung, J.-Y., Guo, L., Grinter, R. E., & Christensen, H. I. (2007) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-540-74853-3_9 · Cited by 219
“As one social psychologist notes, intimacy is “warmth, closeness, and sharing in a relationship” [33].”
BackgroundLiking versus loving: A comparative evaluation of theories.
Sternberg, R. J. (1987) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/0033-2909.102.3.331 · Cited by 214
Self-citationZarantonello, L., Romani, S., Grappi, S., & Fetscherin, M. (2018) · Journal of Brand Management · doi:10.1057/s41262-018-0105-5 · Cited by 204
Antecedents of brand love in online network-based communities. A social identity perspective
Vernuccio, M., Pagani, M., Barbarossa, C., & Pastore, A. (2015) · Journal of Product & Brand Management · doi:10.1108/jpbm-12-2014-0772 · Cited by 229
Cross-sex friendship: Four basic challenges of an ignored relationship
O’Meara, J. D. (1989) · Sex Roles · doi:10.1007/bf00289102 · Cited by 199
Brunstein, J. C., Dangelmayer, G., & Schultheiss, O. C. (1996) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.71.5.1006 · Cited by 196
Levesque, C. S., Lalibertea, M. L. N., Pelletier, L. G., Blanchard, C., & Vallerand, R. J. (2003) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.2003.tb02079.x · Cited by 205
“…it as a component of healthy romantic relationships (deMunck & Korotayev, 1999; Fletcher, Simpson, Thomas, & Giles, 1999; Hatfield & Walster, 1978; Marston, Hecht, Manke, McDaniel, & Reeder, 1998; Peven & Shulman, 1999; Sternberg, 1986, 1988, 1997; Sternberg & Hojjat, 1997; Whitley, 1993).”
Palusuk, N., Köles, B., & Hasan, R. (2019) · Journal of Marketing Management · doi:10.1080/0267257x.2019.1572025 · Cited by 192
“A framework that has been applied extensively to consumer research is the Triangular Theory of Love proposed by Sternberg (1986) encompassing three primary dimensions.”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialFalling in Love With a Product: the Structure of a Romantic Consumer-Product Relationship
Whang, Y.-O., Allen, J., Sahoury, N., & Zhang, H. (2004) · Cited by 187
Experiences of Falling in Love
Aron, A. P., Dutton, D. G., Aron, E. N., & Iverson, A. (1989) · Journal of Social and Personal Relationships · doi:10.1177/0265407589063001 · Cited by 189
Sternberg, R. J., & Sternberg, K. (2008) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/cbo9780511818707 · Cited by 185
Self-citationSong, X., Xu, B., & Zhao, Z. (2022) · Information & Management · doi:10.1016/j.im.2022.103595 · Cited by 192
Metadata
- Authors
- Sternberg, R. J.
- Affiliations
- Yale University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Sternberg, Robert J.
- ORCID
- Sternberg, Robert J.
- Venue
- Psychological Review
- Published
- 1986-04
- Volume
- 93
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 119-135
- ISSN
- 0033-295X (ISSN-L)
- 1939-1471
- OpenAlex
- W2034890640
- Cited by
- 2,614
- References
- 41
- Citations by year
- 2026: 125 · 2025: 204 · 2024: 153 · 2023: 187 · 2022: 165 · 2021: 149 · 2020: 156 · 2019: 167 · 2018: 136 · 2017: 114 · 2016: 97 · 2015: 99 · 2014: 94 · 2013: 90 · 2012: 85
- FWCI
- 16.26
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Psychological Review (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Attachment and Relationship Dynamics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Marriage and Sexual Relationships
- Social Sciences › Demography › Family Dynamics and Relationships
- Keywords
- triangular theory of love, intimacy, passion, commitment, close relationships, romantic love, relationship satisfaction, theory of love
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