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Attraction is a force that draws people together. It can take a variety of forms (e.g., admiration, liking, love) and is integral to the formation of friendships and romantic relationships. This entry briefly reviews several psychological perspectives on interpersonal attraction. The manner in which proximity, similarity, and physical appearance affect attraction is first discussed. How evolution and attachment theory relate to attraction is also considered.
Proximity
Individuals are attracted to others who are in geographic and temporal proximity. Specifically, people develop a preference for persons and objects following repeated exposure (mere exposure effect) and are attracted to individuals the more they see and interact with others (propinquity effect). People encounter others in close proximity more often and, as a result, become more attracted because of familiarity. If ...
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