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A new study has identified four different categories of couples. And only certain duets seem to be able to last over time.
The romantic relationships that unite two people are sometimes difficult to understand. But it would nevertheless be possible to categorize the couples according to American researchers. The results of their work appeared in the “Journal of Marriage and Family”.
Conflicting couples, social dramas and companions
As part of this study, researchers at the University of Illinois observed nearly 400 couples and their way of communicating for nine months.
The goal? “Help couples from the start to know the points to improve for a stable relationship“, says Dr. Brian G. Ogolsky, lead author of the study.
Situating oneself in relation to the four relationships defined by the study could thus make it possible to better understand the functioning of one’s own couple.
The 4 types of couples
In total, 4 couple profiles emerged from this work. It’s about :
- Conflicting couples: they keep breaking up and then getting back together, because they are driven by a “passionate attraction“. But over time, this pattern is not very promising according to the researchers.
- Dramatic couples: they go through a lot of ups and downs,”their commitment fluctuates a lot”. They also struggle to see the positive aspects of their relationship.
- Social pairs: they have a common circle of friends that helps them function. But, according to Dr. Brian G., the risk of this couple is to be influenced by the opinion of their friends.
- Companion pairs: these couples enjoy spending time together and have the same hobbies. “These partners are very involved with each other, dependent on each other and use relational learning to engage more deeply.“, note the researchers.
It is therefore this fourth category that wins the match according to the researchers: this type of couple is made to last longer.