Sexual orientation is a term that describes a person’s sexual, emotional, or romantic attraction, as well as the gender(s) of the people they are attracted to.1, 2 Sexual orientation differs from gender identity in that gender identity describes a person’s psychological identification with a particular gender, rather than their attraction to people. The Kinsey Scale—developed…
Tag: romantic love
Staying in Love
Falling in love is a natural human phenomenon. People do not typically have to actively exert conscious effort to become attracted to someone and fall in love with them. Thanks to our biology, we are pre-programmed to desire close-knit relationships. For most people, this desire is fulfilled by forming intimate relationships with other human beings….
The Neurobiology of Romantic Love
Romantic love is one of the most universal human experiences. More than 20 years ago, biological anthropologist Helen Fisher studied 166 societies and found evidence of romantic love in 147 of them.1 According to Richard Schwartz, associate professor of psychiatry at MacLean Hospital, romantic love must be wired into our basic biological nature due to…