Looking to make your relationship go the extra mile? Then humility is key - or so says science.
In a study examining modesty in romantic relationships, researchers found that humility could actually have a positive impact on your love life.
(Whoever said 'nice guys finish last' must be kicking themselves right now.)
Scientists from the University of North Texas examined the effects of humility on the romantic relationships of 459 participants.
They studied humility against other relationship outcomes such as their levels of commitment to relationships, relationship satisfaction and ability to forgive their partners.
Researchers found that "perceptions of humility were positively related to relationship outcomes". In other words, those who showed modest traits were more likely to have a successful, long-term relationship.
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Writing in the Observer column for the Association for Psychological Science, Don Emerson Davis Jr. and Joshua Hook, who co-authored the study, said: "One main benefit of humility is that it appears to strengthen social bonds... We call this the Social Bonds Hypothesis where commitment promotes a sense of 'we-ness' in close relationships so that individuals enjoy sacrificing for a partner.
They explain that viewing others as humble should "facilitate greater commitment", whereas viewing others as egotistical and selfish should decrease commitment.
And, perhaps unsurprisingly, they also suggest that this trait could improve health too.
"We call this the Health Hypothesis. If humility involves self-regulation in situations that generally lead to egotism or conflict, then it ought to be related to long-term health outcomes," they add.
"Namely, relationship conflict is stressful."
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[H/T Daily Mail]