'Hot' political conversation can hamper love life

NEW YORK: Can a stormy discussion over a political issue at bedtime affect your love life? Very much, finds an interesting poll, suggesting that conflicting political views can kill the heat between some couples.

According to Joan Barnard, relationship expert, while 77 percent of respondents said that they would like to have a productive conversation about politics, 17 percent said they would run in the opposite direction with females being twice as likely to shun the topic, kxan.com reported.



The survey found that women care more about politics than men.

Women were 20 percent more likely to respond with "very important" and "somewhat important" when asked how important it is to reveal political party affiliation.

Younger couples were found to be more open-minded when politics was involved. Couples aged between 18 and 24 were more open to dating across political party lines.



"Respondents over the age of 24 were 20 percent more likely to admit that an individual's political affiliation has kept them from starting a conversation even if they were originally attracted to that person," the report added.

Men between 18 and 24 were 20 percent more likely than any other age group to admit to having changed their political beliefs owing to their significant other's influence, the survey findings noted.

However, 75 percent of respondents stated that they do date across political party lines.