Advertisement

Fix Your Love Life - by Watching Television!

If your partner complains that you’re hogging the remote, say you’re doing it for “us”.

In a study of TV shows at Ohio State University, researchers tallied “relationship maintenance” scenes – interactions between partners – to see the examples that on-screen couples set for viewers at home. Television scenes can inspire real-life actions, says Sean Horan, a communication professor at Texas State University. So grab the remote and save your relationship.

Reality TV Unites You
According to the study data, reality TV has five times as many examples of teamwork and responsibility-sharing as any other genre. Many of the shows analysed were competitions like The Amazing Race. Just remember that winning teams divide their efforts equitably. “Both partners need to be engaged,” Horan says, “so one person isn’t doing all the work.”

MORE: Survive moving in together

Comedies Build Candour
Humorous shows have high rates of characters being honest with one another. Yet that honesty is often brutal, which may make your mate squirm. Horan suggests an even-keeled funny show like Modern Family. “It really doesn’t matter what you say – it’s how you say it. You can say something heavy in a nice way, and then it goes over really well.”

MORE: How to ruin a date in five painful words

Toons Teach You to Talk
Animated series like The Simpsons have characters who excel at networking with their friends, family and other characters. In Bob’s Burgers, Bob Belcher and his wife, Linda, constantly meet new people, which helps them learn more about themselves, Horan says. Just avoid over sharing; these shows tend to be gabby because they use dialogue to advance the plot.

Dramas Reduce Trauma
If TV-as-couples-therapy is tiring you out, watch a drama. Shows like Grey’s Anatomy scored low across the board, which means they’re a fairly innocuous way to zone out. But you can still use the extra couch time to your advantage. By sharing opinions about what you’re watching, you create new opportunities to discuss each other’s needs, Horan says.

GALLERY: Ticking off the bedroom bucket list