poetry promotes love

how often does your significant other write you love songs? a new study from psychological science suggests that love odes may be a cause, not symptom, of successful relationships.

the study divided couples into two groups: one journaled about mundane daily events, and the other about deep emotions regarding their relationships. the study found that those who spilled their emotional guts onto the page were significantly more likely to be together three months later.

an analysis of couples' instant message conversation indicates that an increase in positive emotional language may be a source of this prolongation.

this gives great hope to those among us who are not expressively inclined; as groups were assigned randomly, ability to express thoughts was not a factor. although, then again, we've also heard that keeping a journal is not the best way towards mental health (though their results may be different if journaling only on emotional subjects).

Labels: misc. psych