Romantic relationships are generally expected to be exclusive, meaning involving only one partner at a time. They are also expected to be voluntary, with people choosing who they want to be with. In Western cultures especially, romantic relationships are believed to be based on love and attraction between chosen partners. These relationships can involve either heterosexual or homosexual sexuality and partnerships value intimacy and equality. However, cultural context affects expectations for exclusivity, voluntariness, the role of love, and views on sexuality in romantic relationships around the world.

1. Characteristics of Romantic
Relationships
PREPARED BY INGE SALSABILA SURYAMAN
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2. Romantic Relationships and Exclusivity
 one common expectation for
romantic relationships is that they
are exclusive. Usually exclusivity
takes the form of monogamy,
which means being in only one
romantic relationship at a time and
avoiding romantic or sexual
involvement with others outside
that relationships.

3. Romantic Relationships and Voluntariness
 another common expectation for
romantic relationships is that they are
voluntary, meaning that people choose
for themselves whether to be
romantically involved- and if they decide
to, they get to select their romantic
partner.

4. Romantic Relationships and Love
 in much western world, people
think of marriage and other
romantic relationships as being
based on love. in individualist
societies such as the United
States and Canada, that is,
people tend to believe not only
they should get to choose their
romantic partner but that their
choice should be based on love
and attraction.

5. Romantic Relationships and Sexuality
 people from romantic relationships with
others whether they are heterosexual or
homosexual. In many ways, people
communicate similarly in same- and
opposite sex romantic relationships. Both
kinds of relationships value intimacy and
equality between relational partners

6. Romantic Relationships Around the
World
 as we’ve seen, every common
expectation also varies by culture, as we’ll
discover next. Culture affects
expectations for exclusivity although
exclusivity is often expected for romantic
relationships, culture affects expectations
for voluntaries, culture affects
expectations for love and culture affects
expectations for sexuality.