ABSTRACT
The beginning of personal relationships, particularly romantic relationships, is often shrouded in an aura of luck and mystery. The effects of physical proximity on relationship initiation have been recognized for over 70 years. Important as it is, however, proximity in residential choice or work setting is not sufficient to account for initiation and early formation of relationships. Thus although physical proximity is an often an important contextual factor in the initiation of personal relationships, it is clearly not the only contextual factor of importance and may in some cases be losing its influence altogether as changes in technology allow more widespread movement and communication. Indeed one effect of the changes in communication and transportation technology in the 20th Century may have been to lift relationships from the confines of physical proximity. Social and cultural change usually means a transformation of group norms governing the selection of relational partners.
