When Friends & Family Disapprove of Your Relationship: Is the “Romeo & Juliet Effect” Real?
One of the things I love about being a relationships researcher is that I can sit down to watch a Hollywood flick and consider it productive timebecause it gives me so many great research ideas. Hollywood loves to investigate the inner workings of relationships and love, albeit not always with the most accurate or "empirically informed" lens. Take, for instance, the concept of support for romantic relationships. This is a widely studied topic in social psychology and has graced the screens of numerous Hollywood flicks. According to how love stories typically play out on the silver screen, love conquers all, opposites attract, and in-laws are terrifying creatures. For example, in The Notebook, Allie’s parents deceive Noah and Allie because sadly, Noah is from the "wrong side of the tracks"...