| Sandra Langeslag | |
| Nationality: | Dutch |
| Workplaces: | University of Missouri–St. Louis |
| Education: | Ph.D. |
| Alma Mater: | Erasmus University Rotterdam |
| Spouses: | )--> |
| Partners: | )--> |
Sandra Langeslag is a Dutch cognitive and biological psychologist who studies romantic love.[1] Langeslag is the director of the Neurocognition of Emotion and Motivation Lab at the University of Missouri–St. Louis.[2] She received her PhD from Erasmus University Rotterdam in The Netherlands.[3]
Studies by Langeslag using EEG have demonstrated that self-regulating love feelings is possible,[4] [2] especially through a task called cognitive reappraisal.[5] Cognitive reappraisal involves focusing on positive or negative aspects of the partner to change how one feels.[5]
A 2012 experiment by Langeslag also contradicted a long-running hypothesis in love research which supposed that intrusive thoughts during early-stage romantic love might be caused by decreased serotonin levels.[6] Her experiment found that serotonin levels were differently affected in men and women, and that obsessive thinking in women was actually associated with an increase in serotonin.[6]
See also: Passionate and companionate love.
A 2012 study by Langeslag and others determined that while the Passionate Love Scale is a commonly used instrument to measure passionate love, some of the questions actually measure companionate love as well.[7] She developed a new questionnaire, the Infatuation and Attachment Scales (IAS), to measure slightly different constructs, which she refers to as infatuation and attachment:[7]
Infatuation is the overwhelming, amorous feeling for one individual that is typically most intense during the early stage of love (i.e., when individuals are not (yet) in a relationship with their beloved or are in a new relationship). Attachment, on the other hand, is the comforting feeling of emotional bonding with another individual that takes some time to develop, often in the context of a romantic relationship.
Langeslag studies love regulation, "the use of behavioral or cognitive strategies to change the intensity of current feelings of romantic love."[5] Cognitive reappraisal is an emotion regulation strategy where one focuses on positive or negative aspects of e.g. the partner, the relationship or imagined future scenarios:[5]