The Spark of (Not) Knowing: Early-Stage Romantic Passion Through the Interplay of Perceived Relevance, Subjective Closeness and Uncertainty

This preregistered study examines early-stage romantic passion as a dynamic motivational state emerging during the initial phase of romantic interest. It focuses on the interplay of "knowing" and "not knowing" that characterizes such episodes, in which rapid impression formation, limited knowledge, and ongoing interpretation co-occur (Knobloch & Miller, 2008). Drawing on the extended Zurich Model of Social Motivation (ZM-E; Quirin et al., 2023), the study investigates how perceived relevance, subjective closeness (including associated expectations of relational success), and uncertainty jointly relate to the intensity and type of romantic passion. The study uses a cross-sectional online survey with retrospective self-report data. Participants are asked to recall a clearly identifiable episode of early-stage romantic interest that occurred within the first two weeks after they first became aware of the target person. Episodes may involve direct interaction or one-sided interest and may have occurred online or offline. The central aim is to examine whether motivational appraisals of another person's relevance, closeness, associated expectations of relational progress, and uncertainty help explain variation in early-stage romantic passion. More specifically, the study investigates how these appraisals relate to both the intensity of romantic passion and its type, with particular attention to harmonious and obsessive passion (Vallerand, 2015). Exploratory analyses examine whether these associations vary across gender and sexual orientation. At the time of registration, no data have been collected for the present study.