Delhi University's new course on love, heartbreaks and red flags. What will students learn?

Although there is no formal practical component, the tutorial sessions are expected to be highly interactive.

In a bid to address the emotional complexities and psychological challenges faced by young adults in the digital era, Delhi University (DU) announced the introduction of a new elective course titled Negotiating Intimate Relationships for undergraduate students, commencing from the 2025–26 academic session.

The four-credit paper, offered by the Department of Psychology, has been listed on the university’s official website since 2023. It will be open to all undergraduate students, irrespective of their academic discipline. The only eligibility criterion is the successful completion of the Class 12 examination.

According to the Times of India, the course aims to help students understand the psychological foundations of intimate relationships, develop emotional resilience, and promote healthy interpersonal connections in a time marked by increased dependency on dating apps and social media platforms.

The course will consist of three lectures and one tutorial per week, covering four major thematic units. The first unit will examine the psychology behind friendships and close bonds, providing students with a theoretical and practical framework to understand human connections.

The second unit will delve into various theories of love and sexuality, including Robert Sternberg’s triangular theory of love and the two-factor theory. These frameworks will enable students to critically analyse the basis of romantic and emotional attachment.

The third unit is dedicated to identifying red flags in relationships. Topics will include emotional manipulation, jealousy, and intimate partner violence — issues that have increasingly become a cause for concern in student populations.

The final unit will focus on strategies to nurture fulfilling, respectful, and long-term relationships. It will emphasise emotional intelligence and offer students tools for resolving interpersonal conflict in a constructive manner.

Although there is no formal practical component, the tutorial sessions are expected to be highly interactive. Activities will include film reviews, debates on contemporary dating culture, group discussions, and analyses of social media networks. As part of the course, students will critically assess films such as Kabir Singh and Titanic to examine portrayals of love, obsession, and conflict in popular culture.

Students will also engage in applied exercises using tools such as Sternberg’s triangular love scale to assess their romantic relationships and deepen their understanding of intimacy and emotional dynamics.

The course has been conceptualised in response to the growing emotional distress and reported incidents of interpersonal violence and toxic relationships among youth. DU hopes that structured academic engagement will foster greater emotional intelligence and self-awareness in students.

According to the official course outline, the key objectives are to help students:

Understand the psychological underpinnings of intimate relationships;
Recognise emotional triggers and sources of interpersonal conflict;
Cultivate the ability to form meaningful, respectful, and emotionally healthy bonds.

By the end of the course, students are expected to be able to analyse the psychological roots of love, distress, and attachment, and to apply their insights to real-life relational experiences.

The university said such interventions were “increasingly relevant” given the rise in mental health challenges, unhealthy emotional dependency, and interpersonal violence in academic and social settings.