Recent Study Debunks the Myth of One True Love and Defines the Frequency of Falling in Love

Popular culture has long portrayed romantic love as an extraordinary event that changes the course of life, often reinforcing the idea in cinematic works that a person experiences this feeling only once. However, recent scientific studies have begun to reveal a different picture, suggesting that the experience of love may occur more frequently than many believe.

Results of a Large-Scale Study

A study conducted by the Kinsey Institute and published in the journal Interpersona: An International Journal on Personal Relationships found that most people fall in love twice on average during their lives. The study included over 10,000 single individuals aged between 18 and 99, who were asked to indicate how many times they had experienced romantic love.

Variability in Love Experiences Among Individuals

The study's results showed that 14% of participants had never experienced romantic love, while 28% reported falling in love once, 30% twice, 17% three times, and 11% indicated they had undergone this experience four times or more.

Love is Not Tied to a Specific Age

The lead researcher of the study, Dr. Amanda Giesterman, explained that these results represent one of the first scientific attempts to measure how many times a person falls in love. She noted that older individuals reported slightly more love experiences compared to younger ones, indicating that these feelings may recur at different stages of life, although the majority of experiences occur at a younger age.

Limited Differences Between Men and Women

The study also showed that men reported slightly more love experiences than women, but the differences between genders were minimal, suggesting that romantic love is a largely shared human experience.

The Importance of the Results in Understanding Human Relationships

Researchers believe that these findings may help mental health professionals contextualize romantic relationships, emphasizing that romantic love is a common experience but not one that is frequently repeated by any single individual, which also highlights the importance of other forms of relationships and human emotions.