Indicators that can Tell if a Relationship may be Short Shelf Lived or will Endure the Passage of Time

Many times it has been witnessed that the most unlikely-seeming relationships often prove to be the most sustaining. And those that appear made in heaven often dissolve, to the consternation of friends and family. Why is this?

What can help people to clear some doubts if a relationship will be successful or not, is to gain the knowledge about relationships and learn the features & characteristics of it (relationship) that has a high percentage of outcome for short shelf-life or continued growth relationships.

Scientific world today use various information from academic research and clinical analysis to identify the relationship indicators that can determine a relationship age. In this article Delhi’s eminent Relationship & Marriage Counsellor Shivani Misri Sadhoo shares some those crucial findings.

Indicator 1 - Bling

The first study that was conducted by Swansea University in Wales, involves 151 heterosexual men and women. This study identified that people who are most attracted to “bling” — material wealth, flashy possessions etc., will prefer short-term relationships. Participants were asked to look at pictures of potential partners and rate them according to whether they would prefer a short-term or long-term relationship with each one. Then they were shown images of material wealth, such as fast cars, jewelry, villas, and mansions. Afterward, they were asked to rate the pictures of potential partners once again. This time, both the men and women selected significantly more partners for a short-term relationship than they did previously.

Indicator 2 – Decline of romance

The second study, from the University of California at Davis, found that long-term and short-term relationships look the same initially, but long-term and short-term trajectories typically pull apart after you've known someone for weeks or months. In the beginning, there is no strong evidence that people can tell whether a given relationship will be long-term and serious or short-term and casual.

But then the study also found that romantic interest tends to plateau and decline in short-term relationships, while in long-term relationships, it continues to ascend and reaches a higher peak.

Indicator 3 – If only passion exists

Another major indicator that a relationship may not last is when there is only passionate love. That is if the emotional high from the passion is the only thing holding you and your partner together then the relationship is at risk.

If you 'fell head over heels in love' you can just as easily fall out of love... Holding on to your partner as the passionate love diminishes, when there is no other glue in the relationship, doesn’t work of course, because the tighter you hold, the more slippery your partner becomes. If you have common interests and empathic communication that is the glue that can hold a relationship together even after the passion wanes.

Indicator 4- If you feel like you can’t be fully Be Yourself

For a relationship to last long-term, it's so important to feel like you can always be your genuine, authentic self around your partner. If you just started dating, it might take a bit for you to open up, and that's OK — but if you can't be your full self at the beginning of a relationship, it can be a sign that you feel like there is a part of you that isn't appropriate for the relationship. When we leave out any authentic part of our self — whether it be [an] angry part, depressed part, [or] kinky part — then we are setting up the relationship to stay on the surface, which will not support long-term potential."

Indicator 5- Lack of Mutual Respect    

    

The foundation for any healthy long-term relationship is mutual respect, which means that both partner's opinions are equally valued in any given situation. If you get the sense (whether subtle or not) that your partner values their own opinion above yours, that's a sign they won't make a great partner long-term.