The experts also believe they have discovered how to keep love alive in a relationship.
At the University of Colorado, several neuroscientists wanted to know why we are attracted to each other, what happens in our brains when we meet our significant others, and how passion is kept alive in relationships.
As part of the exploration, they focused on the brain responses that creatures have when they interact with others.
The study used small North American mammals with short ears and tails and gray and brown fur. The decision depended on the main areas of strength of the connections that this species structures.
Two tests were performed on these creatures. In the main test, they were isolated from their mates by a switch-controlled entrance, and in the subsequent test, they were isolated by a climbable wall.
In both tests, the creatures had fiber-optic sensors embedded in their brains, which illuminated the location of the development of dopamine, a particle that is produced in the body toward the onset of a relationship, while the sensation of falling headfirst occurs.
When the animals pushed the lever or climbed up the wall to meet their partners, these sensors lit up as “glow sticks.”
What is the conclusion? One of the researchers stated, “When we are with our partner, there is more dopamine in our brain than when we are with a stranger, which gives us pleasure and happiness.”
Does distance harm the relationship?
In contrast, a similar reaction was not observed when the creatures were reunited after being isolated for quite some time. Dopamine was almost nonexistent when the animals were brought back together after weeks of research.
The craving for association had disappeared. “It tends to be deciphered by a kind of resetting in the mind that allows the creature to shape new associations,” suggested one of the experts in the field.
More research is needed to truly understand what these results mean to people, however, the group believes that the review has important ramifications for people struggling to form close bonds and for those going through a separation.
Other research from the University of Colorado found that, despite some conventional wisdom to the contrary, opposites don’t actually attract. A sweeping CU Boulder analysis of more than 130 traits and including millions of couples over more than a century found that people are actually more attracted to those who are similar to themselves.
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This post was previously published on medium.com.
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From The Good Men Project on Medium
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