A partnership must be carefully nurtured. And science even claims that the happiest couples are those who do something very ordinary together.
What happens when you're in the relationship you've been dreaming of? What to do to make it last forever? Professor of Psychology at the University of California, Berkeley Dacher Keltner has some interesting research on the subject. Keltner is an expert on positive emotions and the author of the book Born to Be Good: The Science of a Meaningful Life, which deals with how to be happy in life and in relationships. So he also focused on romantic relationships and their duration. He says couples should nurture one thing in particular if they want their relationship to last. Maybe you think it's about communication or mutual respect. Maybe you think it's about sex life. NO. A case of LAUGHTER. Laughter turns out to be a bit unexpected, but a great way to maintain relationships.
"For couples who broke up an average of 13.9 years after marriage, the end of their relationship was predicted by the absence of laughter," they stated in the survey. "In the later stages of intimate relationships, laughter is what brings individuals together."
The research showed that couples who knew how to joke with each other were not not only happier, but they were also more adept at resolving conflicts (and more likely they stayed together). "Playfulness helps couples bond, de-stress," says Julienne Derichs, a marriage and family therapist with Couples Counseling Today. "Laughter can help you resolve conflict by reminding you that you actually like each other."
Playful teasing means that you gently "argue" about things, which you find fun and loving: e.g. if your spouse is always losing their keys and it gets on your nerves, but you playfully tease each other that they have the key to your heart. According to Dacher, playful teasing can be included in the middle of an argument: "Happy couples tease each other a lot when they're in conflict, in interesting ways, like, 'The fact that you don't do the dishes bothers me, but I still love you.' It's not such a problem that I can't solve it. They tease each other in ways that allow them to express conflicting issues, but in a collaborative and enjoyable way.”
Laughter really is the best medicine! Never forget him!
