Turns out Romeo and Juliet had it all wrong.
While the romantic tale has created stereotypes about familial hatred driving couples closer together, a new study shows that support from friends and family is essential to having a successful relationship.
So, if the Capulets and the Montagues, plus all of Romeo and Juliets friends, had been trying to tear the couple apart, the couple would likely have split instead of dying in a teenage miscommunication.
The study, which was published by the Journal of Family Psychology reports that peoples opinions affected the quality of the relationship, and friends opinions were especially significant, Nicolas DiDomizio reported for Mic.
"Relationship stigma from friends in particular was associated with lower relationship commitment, trust, love, and sexual communication, as well as greater odds of intimate partner aggression victimization," the study said.
This goes against the findings of a study from the early 70s that first backed up the Romeo and Juliet effect, Karen Blair wrote for Science of Relationships. However, most studies since then have failed to support this theory.
Granted, the influence of friends is widely known. Studies have shown that people tend to mirror their friends eating and financial habits. Its especially prominent with teens, who are more likely to smoke and drink if their friends do.
Thats not to say you should always follow this advice or let your friends pressure you into ending a relationship or eating unhealthily.
While friends may not mean to give bad advice, they may be giving biased advice based on their misconceptions and previous experiences, Marcia Sirota wrote for The Huffington Post.
Most of the time, though, our friends are trying to help us, Sirota wrote. They sincerely believe that what they're saying is in our best interests. We need to see that even though they love us and know us to some extent, they don't always know what's good for us.
But despite a friend's potentially faulty advice, its important to ensure that you have good friendships developed for that moment when things go wrong, like the end of a relationship, Mary Duenwald reported for The New York Times.
''It is wise to pay attention to your friendships and have them in order while you're healthy and your life and work are going well,'' Lerner said. ''Because when a crisis hits, when someone you love dies, or you lose your job and your health insurance, when the universe gives you a crash course in vulnerability, you will discover how crucial and life-preserving good friendship is.''
While the romantic tale has created stereotypes about familial hatred driving couples closer together, a new study shows that support from friends and family is essential to having a successful relationship.
So, if the Capulets and the Montagues, plus all of Romeo and Juliets friends, had been trying to tear the couple apart, the couple would likely have split instead of dying in a teenage miscommunication.
The study, which was published by the Journal of Family Psychology reports that peoples opinions affected the quality of the relationship, and friends opinions were especially significant, Nicolas DiDomizio reported for Mic.
"Relationship stigma from friends in particular was associated with lower relationship commitment, trust, love, and sexual communication, as well as greater odds of intimate partner aggression victimization," the study said.
This goes against the findings of a study from the early 70s that first backed up the Romeo and Juliet effect, Karen Blair wrote for Science of Relationships. However, most studies since then have failed to support this theory.
Granted, the influence of friends is widely known. Studies have shown that people tend to mirror their friends eating and financial habits. Its especially prominent with teens, who are more likely to smoke and drink if their friends do.
Thats not to say you should always follow this advice or let your friends pressure you into ending a relationship or eating unhealthily.
While friends may not mean to give bad advice, they may be giving biased advice based on their misconceptions and previous experiences, Marcia Sirota wrote for The Huffington Post.
Most of the time, though, our friends are trying to help us, Sirota wrote. They sincerely believe that what they're saying is in our best interests. We need to see that even though they love us and know us to some extent, they don't always know what's good for us.
But despite a friend's potentially faulty advice, its important to ensure that you have good friendships developed for that moment when things go wrong, like the end of a relationship, Mary Duenwald reported for The New York Times.
''It is wise to pay attention to your friendships and have them in order while you're healthy and your life and work are going well,'' Lerner said. ''Because when a crisis hits, when someone you love dies, or you lose your job and your health insurance, when the universe gives you a crash course in vulnerability, you will discover how crucial and life-preserving good friendship is.''