The Triangle of Love

What it is about

The Triangle of Love presents Robert Sternberg’s intimacy–passion–commitment model: three components that combine into different kinds of love over time. Couples can use the triangle as a shared vocabulary for which part of love feels present and which feels thin, without treating any missing corner as moral failure. Sternberg also discusses how the balance among the three can shift across a relationship’s life. The book is a conceptual reference, not a personality test that decides whether you should marry, and not a clinical protocol.

Questions it can answer

• What do intimacy, passion, and commitment each name in Sternberg’s triangle?
• How can a couple use the model to say which part of love is present or missing?
• Why is a thin corner of the triangle not the same as a moral verdict on the person?

What you will not find

• A scored test that proves you should stay or leave
• Therapy scripts for repairing betrayal or abuse
• A full history of marriage as an institution