Project Romance
How we create and recreate connections in the time of COVID-19
Major stressors such as crises and pandemics seem to alter the paths of our relationships. According to Helen Fisher, a biological anthropologist who studies romantic love around the world and Chief Science Adviser to Match.com, a dating site where she collects and analyzes data on singles, the new social norms this year are actually changing people’s romantic relationships in some positive ways.
For singles, the distancing measures have forced them to do a lot of video chatting in which they get to know one another without any physical contact or the worry of who should pay the bill, giving them additional time to get know someone and potentially allowing a romance or attachment to develop. For people who are in a relationship, being close together with their partners makes small talk less relevant and allows them to share far more meaningful thoughts and emotions. This self-disclosure impels intimacy, love, and commitment. A recent poll by Monmouth University found that most people in relationships are satisfied with them, despite the expected stresses.
As stated in a report by McKinsey’s COVID Response Center, the current period is creating new opportunities for people to strengthen and add new dimensions to all kinds of relationships in general. However, the same report noted the limitations of video calls and concluded that “visiting, gathering, shaking hands and hugging are core human behaviors that connect us,” which we need to keep doing (once we can) to keep our relationships alive.
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