In this paper Sperling defines and describes what he calls desperate love, discussing it as a phenomenon in itself. Drawing from Kernberg and others, he examines it dynamically and genetically, primarily from an object-relations point of view. While he does not see it as being necessarily pathological per se, he does posit that it is due to anxiety and urgency arising from closeness and is a reflection of predispositional character traits resulting from unresolved conflicts in the rapprochement phase of development.