Love (How Does It Operate?) Flashcards
(18 cards)
What is the biological perspective of love?
Love is grounded in evolution, neural systems & chemistry
Involves psychological adaptations to assist humans in resolving problems related to survival & reproduction
Different kinds of love related to different problems - passionate love to solve attraction, companionate love to solve commitment problems
What did Bartels & Zeki (2000) research?
Brain activity of ppts describing themselves as deeply in love
Bought in 2 pictures of their beloved & an acquaintance
Completed passionate love scale
Completed fMRI while being shown pictures & math test
What did Bartels & Zeki (2000) find?
Ppts higher levels of passionate love while looking at beloved photo
Greater activation in VTA & caudate nucleus (reward & motivation system)
Areas of brain activated that produce dopamine
Love as reward based
Findings replicated cross-culturally & across sexual orientations (Acevedo, 2015)
What are brain areas decreasing activation (Zeki, 2007)?
Amygdala (fear & anger)
Frontal cortex (critical thinking, executive functioning & logic)
What did Fisher et al (2002) propose about love?
3 brain systems - lust, attraction & attachment
Lust - testosterone, oestrogen
Attraction - dopamine, norepinephrine & serotonin
Attachment - oxytocin & vasopressin
What is lust in Fishers explanation?
Characterised by craving for sexual gratification
Not necessarily focused on particular person - directed at number of people
fMRI studies of human sexual arousal show activation of hypothalamus - stimulate production of sex hormones
What is romantic attraction in Fishers explanation?
Corresponds to passionate love
Characterised by focused energy & attention on specific individual
fMRI studies show involves reward pathways of brain & production of dopamine & noradrenaline
Attraction leads to reduction in serotonin - levels of new loves equivalent to low serotonin of patients with OCD (Marazziti et al, 1999
What is attachment in Fishers explanation?
Found in long-term relationships (companionate)
Brain system associated with production of oxytocin & vasopressin
Evolved to enable us to stick together & sustainably an afflictive connection with the dopaminergic thrill is gone
What is attachment in Fishers explanation?
What is the theory of 3 brain systems?
3 systems can work together or separately
Love can start with any 3 feelings - feel strong sexual attraction, fall head over heels in love or slowly grow deeply attached to someone known for years
What can happen with romantic breakups?
Decreased self-esteem (Patrick et al, 2017)
Increased depression symptoms (Sbarra, 2007)
Increased suicide attempts (Donald et al, 2006)
Increased risk for illness
Increased risk of early death - relative risk similar to obesity
One of the most stressful times in a persons life (Simpson, 1987)
What are individual/ sociodemographic characteristics contributing to breakups (Vangelisti, 2005)?
Age of marriage
Early parenthood
Having child before marriage
Low SES & educational level
Lack of religious participation
High levels of neuroticism
What are dyadic characteristics contributing to breakups? (Vangelisti, 2005)
Dissimialr attitudes
Relationship satisfaction
Lack of stimulation
Lack of sexual satisfaction
Extra marital affairs
What are the 4 stages of a breakup according to Ducks model?
Intrapsychic phase
Dyadic phase
Social phase
Grave-dressing phase
What happens at the intrapsychic phase?
Reflection on dissatisfaction
Focus on persons internal thought process
Threshold = I can’t stand this anymore
What happens at the dyadic phase?
Revealing dissatisfaction to partner
Threshold = I would. Be justified in withdrawing
What happens at the social phase?
Distress made public
Phase normally leads to dissolution of the relationship
Threshold = I mean it
What happens at the grave-dressing stage?
Recover by thinking why & how it happened
Closure of the previous relationship & readiness to start new one
Threshold = it’s time to start a new life
