A recent study found that being thankful and genuinely expressing words of appreciation allowed romantic partners to have greater emotional intimacy. Perhaps the most interesting finding, however, was that the expressions of gratitude made the couple more lovable. In the study, when someone witnessed the couple’s acts of thankfulness, they were more interested in getting to know the thankful person as well as the person on the receiving end of the expression. The witness was more likely to hold both parties in high esteem, and felt like they could be vulnerable with the partners.