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How do we get so angry? Sternberg’s theory Psychologists have given much less thought to hate than to love, depression, fears, and bad habits. Yet, there are a few books and theories about why we hate (Keen, 1986; Dozier, 2003; Levin & Rabrenovic, 2004). One of the best and most recent theories is by Dr. Robert Sternberg (2005), who is well known for his descriptions of higher mental functions (intelligence, creativity and wisdom). He has also proposed a theory about love. He says that love has three parts:<ul type="square">[*] (1) intimacy,[*](2) passion and[*] (3) commitment. A major factor that contributes to the love one achieves in life consists of the various love stories (expectations and memories) one experiences and retains about love over his/her life time. Examples of love stories or beliefs are:[*] (a) marriage is a business deal and each person has jobs to do;[*](b) one person can not meet all your needs so you need to have lots of relationships, not just a lover, and[*] (c) love soon becomes boring or a series of unhappy wars;[*] (d) love is a fairy tale of a prince and a princess who have a wonderful life together loving each other forever; and so on. Sternberg applies many of the same ideas to hate.

The three components that make up hate are:[*](1) First a steady avoidance of interacting with people we don’t like which leads to having few facts and little understanding of each other. Without meaningful interaction with our enemies there is little way to discredit the propaganda and rumors we hear about them being inferior, arrogant, immoral, cruel, subhuman, or evil people, almost like dirty or vicious animals.[*] (2) A second part of hate is a strong emotional reaction of passionate anger, contempt, and disgust or dislike for the enemy. These negative feelings are quick conditioned responses which our brain doesn’t check for accuracy.[*] (3) The third part of hate consists of a belief system that adds fuel to the hot emotions and justifies our hate and our firm commitment to avoiding, denouncing, and degrading or destroying the hated group.[/list]