Not everyone is into cuddling, but if you feel like snuggling up to your partner while binge-watching Netflix, go for it. It turns out, it could actually make your relationship stronger. A newstudyfrom Binghamton University in New York looks into the effects of non-sexual physical touch and finds couples who do a lot of hugging, hand-holding and such are happier in their relationships.
For the research, a group of 184 couples were interviewed and asked separately about how much touching and affection they have in their relationship, how happy they are with the relationship overall, and their attachment style - which refers to how comfortable someone is with physical and emotional intimacy. And the results show that regardless of attachment styles, the more a couple shows physical affection to each other, the more satisfied they feel.
The study finds higher overall levels of physical intimacy are linked to more relationship satisfaction in men and low levels of physical intimacy are linked to relationship dissatisfaction in women. Sounds like the same thing, right? But researchers explain the subtle difference is basically that for men, physical intimacy is a nice extra, but for women, it’s a necessity. And next time you’re arguing, try holding your partner’s hand. Study author Samantha Wagner says there’s some evidence that it “de-escalates the argument and makes it more productive.”
Source:Binghamton University