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Love and Belongingness Needs

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Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences

Synonyms

Acceptance; Affection; Closeness; Connection; Intimacy

Definition

Love has been defined as the emotional and physiological bond we feel toward others, characterized by varying degrees of attraction, affection, intimacy, and commitment. Belongingness needs refer to our desire to feel accepted by others and to feel a sense of belonging to a group.

Introduction

According to Maslow’s (1943) hierarchy of needs, “the love needs” – which include striving for “love and affection and belongingness needs” (p. 380) – rank right after the basic physiological and safety needs; failure to meet these love and belongingness needs is associated with psychopathology. Love and belongingness needs can be fulfilled within general relationships, such as belonging to an ingroup, or within specific relationships, such as friendships, parent-child relationships, or romantic relationships (Maslow 1943). It is these latter relationships that are the focus of this entry.

The concept of love has various...

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Correspondence to Rebecca T. Pinkus .

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Pinkus, R.T. (2020). Love and Belongingness Needs. In: Zeigler-Hill, V., Shackelford, T.K. (eds) Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-24612-3_1487

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