Love Relationships

8 Types Based on:

Intimacy

Passion

Commitment

Non-love

The extreme : a casual relationship in which

there is neither intimacy, nor passion nor

commitment.

LikingLiking is what we experience with somefriends and acquaintances and involvesOnly an increase in intimacy.

There is no passion or commitment.

It is perfectly possible to be committed to afriend and their welfare.

Infatuation

Infatuation involves passion but neither

Intimacy nor commitment.

We might become infatuated with some

unobtainable person such as a film star or

television personality or even the perfectly

happy wife or husband of someone round

the corner.

Empty love

An interesting category that involves only

decision-commitment, but with no intimacy

or passion.

Like infatuation, it tends to be in one

direction, that is, to be unreciprocated.

A relationship based on empty love is hard

to imagine.

Romantic love

Romantic love is what most readily comes to mind when theword love is mentioned. ItInvolves intimacy and passion butnot necessarily any commitment.

It is what characterises many short-term romantic encounters,even those that last for only onenight.

Fatuous love

A rather rare type of love relationship.

Involves passion and commitment

but with no intimacy.

Such relationships are probably

doomed to failure at some time.

Companionate love

There is intimacy and commitment but no passion andis, perhaps, the position of many reasonably successful

marriages.

The passion has gone but the intimacy and commitment remain.

Clearly, however, if a relationship started off in this way itwould seem as if there were something missing; and there

would be.

Consummate love

This is how many long-term relationships begin or howthey develop in the early stages. Some remain like this.

Involves all three of intimacy, passion and commitment.