The English lexicon of interpersonal affect: Love, etc

Abstract

Three studies were conducted to determine some aspects of the semantic structure of words referring to positive interpersonal affect. Two studies determined dimensions of difference and families of related words on the basis of the target persons associated with each. These results were compared with those from sorting on the basis of overall similarity of meaning. There was close agreement among the three studies, using different samples of words, indices of similarity, and judges. The relation of the similarity structure of the words to the dimensions of affective experience and to discrete, basic, emotion is discussed.

Notes

Correspondence should be addressed to Christine Storm, Department of Psychology, Mount Allison University, 49A York St, Sackville, NB, Canada E4L 4R6; email: [email protected]

This research was supported by a grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada awarded to Christine Storm. We thank our honours student, Cathy Frizzle, for her work on Study One and Laura Dunlop for her assistance in data collection. We also acknowledge the useful suggestions made by two anonymous reviewers and Gerry Parrott on an earlier version of this manuscript and, more recently another anonymous reviewer and Craig Smith.

The Oxford English Dictionary is especially prolix in this regard. The first of the three senses is: “that disposition or state of feeling with regard to a person which (arising from recognition of attractive qualities, from instincts of natural relationship, or from sympathy) manifests itself in solicitude for the welfare of the object, and usually also in delight in his/her presence and desire for approval”.