Predictors of love attitudes: The contribution of cultural orientation, gender attachment style, relationship length and age in participants from the UK and Hong Kong

Rebecca Smith,Antonia Klases

doi:10.5964/ijpr.v10i1.204

Rebecca Smith, Antonia Klases

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.5964/ijpr.v10i1.204

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Abstract

The aim of this research was to explore whether a model including psychological predictors at the individual, interpersonal and cultural level could predict romantic attitudes. Attachment style, cultural orientation, gender, and relationship length were tested as predictors for each of the six love styles conceptualized by Lee (1977). Adults from Britain (N = 56) and Hong Kong (N = 52) who were in a romantic relationship completed four self-report measures; a demographic questionnaire, The Individualism and Collectivism Scale (IC-S), The Experiences in Close Relationship Scale-Short Form (ECR-S) and The Love Attitude Scale short form (LAS). The model successfully predicted each love style and in one case (Mania) accounted for 52% of the variance in this love style. Each love attitude had a different profile, and no one predictor dominated any one style which supports Lee’s original idea that the styles are qualitatively different.

Highlights

The aim of this research was to explore whether a model including psychological predictors at the individual, interpersonal and cultural level could predict romantic attitudes
T tests revealed that collectivism scores were significantly higher in Hong Kong (t(106) = 2.21, p = .029 and individualism scores were significantly higher in the UK (t(106) = 10.23, p = .001)
This study explored whether cultural orientation, gender, attachment style, and relationship could be combined to predict each of the different love styles, and the results revealed that they did

Summary

Introduction

The aim of this research was to explore whether a model including psychological predictors at the individual, interpersonal and cultural level could predict romantic attitudes. Attachment style, cultural orientation, gender, and relationship length were tested as predictors for each of the six love styles conceptualized by Lee (1977). Each love attitude had a different profile, and no one predictor dominated any one style which supports Lee’s original idea that the styles are qualitatively different. This study seeks to explain romantic love by investigating the impact a range of factors have on it; the study explores how relationship length, gender, cultural values, and attachment style influence the experience of love, using Lee’s (1977) Colours of Love Theory. Lee claimed that individuals have distinct approaches or attitudes toward love and love is a multi-dimensional concept consisting of six distinct types of love

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