Sternberg's Triangular Theory of Love

🧠 Psychology By CampusDown Wiki Editorial Team Last updated October 15, 2026

Quick answer: Sternberg's theory sees love as a triangle of intimacy, passion and commitment, whose combinations yield different kinds of love.

Contents

1. Three components
2. Eight kinds of love
3. Change and evaluation
4. References

Three components

Intimacy: feelings of closeness and connectedness, the emotional component.
Passion: physical attraction and sexual drive, the motivational component.
Decision/commitment: deciding that one loves someone and committing to maintain that love, the cognitive component.

Eight kinds of love

Non-love (none), liking (intimacy), infatuated love (passion), empty love (commitment)
Romantic love (intimacy + passion), companionate love (intimacy + commitment), fatuous love (passion + commitment)
Consummate love (all three)

Change and evaluation

Passion rises and fades quickly, while intimacy and commitment build slowly. Couples whose triangles match tend to be more satisfied. Sternberg built the Triangular Love Scale to measure the components, but critics note they correlate highly and are not fully independent.

References

Sternberg, R. J. (1986). A triangular theory of love. Psychological Review, 93(2), 119-135.
Sternberg, R. J. (1997). Construct validation of a triangular love scale. European Journal of Social Psychology, 27(3), 313-335.
Sternberg, R. J. (1988). The Triangle of Love. Basic Books.

Reports and materials that use this theory (Korean)

There are no materials dedicated to this theory yet, but you can search related reports in the CampusDown library (Korean).

Find more reports · Search '스턴버그의 사랑의 삼각형 이론' on CampusDown →

Personality TheoriesAn overview of personality theories: Freud's psychoanalysis, trait approaches from Allport and Eysenck to the Big Five, humanistic theories of Rogers and Maslow, and Bandura's social-cognitive view, with comparisons and critiques.🧠 Psychology Maslow's Hierarchy of NeedsMaslow's hierarchy of needs explained: definition, the five levels, deficiency vs. growth needs, the pyramid myth, empirical criticisms and limitations, report examples for social work, nursing and business, and references.🧠 Psychology Cognitive Dissonance TheoryFestinger's cognitive dissonance theory explained: definition, dissonance reduction, the $1/$20 experiment, effort justification, free choice, criticisms, and report examples.🧠 Psychology Erikson's Psychosocial Development TheoryErikson's eight psychosocial stages explained: crises and virtues from trust vs. mistrust to integrity vs. despair, identity, comparison with Freud, criticisms, and report examples.🧠 Psychology

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)Brown v. Board of Education (1954) summary: the case, Chief Justice Warren's unanimous ruling, why 'separate but equal' fell, and what happened after.⚖️ Law Intestate SuccessionWho inherits when someone dies without a will: how U.S. intestacy statutes rank spouses, children and other relatives, how per stirpes works, and how Korea's Civil Act sets heirs, shares and representation.⚖️ Law Common Law vs. Civil LawCommon law vs. civil law: how the two legal families differ on sources of law, precedent, trials and judges, and where Korea's mixed system fits between them.⚖️ Law The Rule of LawWhat is the rule of law? Its meaning and history from Magna Carta to United States v. Nixon, Dicey and Fuller's principles, and how it differs from rule by law.⚖️ Law

This article was last updated on October 15, 2026. It is based on widely recognized original works and textbooks; when citing it in a paper, please check the original sources listed in the references.