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Definition
A psychological and physiological state that entails the desire to be with another person.
Description
Introduction
Love is a universal human experience. It is viewed as a basic human emotion that may manifest itself in a variety of forms and lead to a variety of cognitive-affective responses and behaviors (Hatfield & Rapson,1993). It can be experienced for many close others (romantic partner, spouse, parents, children, friends, etc.) and even for humanity and nonliving entities. Love has been defined by scientists in various ways, including as an emotion and a physiological state (Hatfield & Rapson,1993).
Because of love’s importance, people, too, have their own theories about love. When asked their beliefs about features central to love, people have consensus that some features (e.g., compassion, intimacy) are more central to love than others (e.g., feelings...
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Authors and Affiliations
Department of Psychology, DePaul University, 2219 N. Kenmore Ave, Chicago, IL, 60614, USA
Stanislav Treger
Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Illinois State University, 4660, Normal, IL, 61790-4660, USA
Susan Sprecher
Department of Psychology, University of Hawaii, 3334 Anoai Place, Honolulu, HI, 96822, USA
Elaine C. Hatfield
- Stanislav Treger
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- Susan Sprecher
Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar
- Elaine C. Hatfield
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Correspondence toStanislav Treger.
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Editors and Affiliations
University of Northern British Columbia, Prince George, BC, Canada
Alex C. Michalos
(residence), Brandon, MB, Canada
Alex C. Michalos
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Treger, S., Sprecher, S., Hatfield, E.C. (2014). Love. In: Michalos, A.C. (eds) Encyclopedia of Quality of Life and Well-Being Research. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-0753-5_1706
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