Pair Bonding

Type: Concept

As of November 2026, Pair Bonding has been mentioned in one podcast episode on Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard (Feb 2026). Discussed as a biological and social mechanism in relationships.

In biology, a pair bond is the strong affinity that develops in some species between a mating pair, often leading to the production and rearing of young and potentially a lifelong bond. Pair-bonding is a term coined in the 1940s that is frequently used in sociobiology and evolutionary biology circles. The term often implies either a lifelong socially monogamous relationship or a stage of mating interaction in socially monogamous species. It is sometimes used in reference to human relationships.