Does romantic love matter to Chinese people? individual differences in valuing romantic love in dating and marriage

Abstract

Romantic love interests many researchers, many of whom have sought to define it. In this thesis project, we asked a fundamental but understudied question: What does romantic love mean to Chinese people? Whereas romantic love is believed to be essential to marriage in Western cultures, family approval and financial support have been valued in marriages in China. In China, a dating relationship has long been considered a prelude to marriage. Nowadays, how is romantic love, as compared to other considerations (e.g., family approval and financial support), valued in dating relationships and marriages among Chinese young adults? Is the notion of romantic love among the Chinese related to cultural and individual variables, such as personality, love style, and attachment style? Two separate groups of university students were recruited for each study. In Study 1, we used the free-listing method to generate attributes of romantic love, dating considerations, and marriage considerations. In Study 2, we used the romantic love attributes generated in Study 1 to map the underlying structure of romantic love among the Chinese. Four dimensions of romantic love were found, and they were companionship, commitment, passionate romance, and infatuation. We tested how cultural backgrounds and individual characteristics influenced the participants’ considerations in dating and marriage, respectively. Romantic love was found to be highly valued by both the Hong Kong Chinese (HKC) and the mainland Chinese (MC) in dating and marriage. Additionally, compatibility was equally or more important than romantic love in marriage among the HKC and MC participants, respectively. In terms of individual characteristics, people scored high on Neuroticism emphasized romantic love, whereas those who scored high on Extraversion valued family approval more. The findings reveal a four-factor structure of romantic love among the Chinese and suggest that recognizing individual differences can provide insight into the study of romantic love.

Date of Award	2020
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology