This Psychological Trick May Actually Improve Your Relationship

This Psychological Trick May Actually Improve Your Relationship

When you do nice things for your significant other, it actually makes you like them more.

It's an idea rooted in "The Benjamin Franklin Effect" -- a psychological phenomenon, discovered by the founding father himself, that suggests we grow to like people for whom we do nice things.

The folks at Soul Pancake decided to put this effect to the test in their latest video about the science of love. They recruited several couples to participate in the experiment; while one parter spent the entire time doting on the other -- verbally expressing their love in various ways and even bringing their partner a drink -- the other partner did nothing.

At the end of the experiment, the partners who spent their time being overly nice were five percent more attracted to their significant others than they were at the beginning of the exercise, based on questionnaires taken before and after the test.

The takeaway?

"Make sure you allow room in the relationship for the other person to also give it back and invest in you," host Julian says. "So maybe don't insist on paying the bill every time, or driving to their place every time. Give them a shot to invest and put just as much into as you do ... give your partner a chance to contribute."

Watch the video above to see the experiment in its entirety.

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