Assessment, Statistics, and Research

Can you measure love? Robert Sternberg thinks so. Early clinical perspectives on love can be found in the works of Freud and Maslow. But scientific approaches have looked at the many dimensions of love in the last few decades. One popular theory is the Triangular Theory of Love presented by Robert J. Sternberg . As the name implies, there are three constructs in this theory of interpersonal love: Intimacy, passion, and commitment/decision (see Sternberg, 1986, for an explanation). Sternberg referred to each with a "temperature" rating from hot to cool--see the parentheses below. Intimacy refers to lovers’ emotional investment in their relationship (feeling close, connected, bonded, a measure of "warmth"). Passion refers to lovers’ motivational involvement in their relationship (romance, attraction, sex, a measure of "hot"). Commitment/decision refer to lovers’ thoughts about their relationship in terms of decision (I lo...