A Cultural Perspective on Romantic Love

Abstract

The article presents a conceptual, historical, anthropological, psychological, and sociological review of cultural perspectives on love: how culture affects our experience and expression of love. The evidence suggests that love is a universal emotion experienced by a majority of people, in various historical eras, and in all the world’s cultures, but manifests itself in different ways because culture has an impact on people’s conceptions of love and the way they feel, think, and behave in romantic relationships.