Our research on close relationships explores how people choose romantic partners, how relationships develop and change over time, and the factors contributing to romantic connection and compatibility. Across all three strands, a particular emphasis is placed on understanding the interactions between gender, personal dispositions, and contextual influences. Recently, we have begun integrating our research on close relationships with our work in music psychology to investigate the role music plays in romantic relationships.

Our work on partner preferences has challenged a tenet of evolutionary psychology by showing that sex differences in partner preferences are not universal, but differ across the world as a function of gender equality and other sociocultural factors. National levels of gender equality also influence the level of distress experienced by gender-nonconforming individuals. We have also examined how environmental stressors and personal vulnerabilities affected relationship satisfaction and identified distinct trajectories of relationship and sexual satisfaction during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Our newest line of research combines relationship science and music psychology. We have examined the potential role of music in romantic connections, as well as how musical experiences throughout relationships relate to satisfaction, intimacy, passion, and commitment. More recently, we discovered that romantic partners tend to have more similar music preferences than personality traits or personal values. Ongoing studies build on this work by examining music-preference compatibility and the role of music across the stages of romantic relationships, including breakups.