36 Deep Questions to Ask

Your Signi cant Other So You

Can Truly Know Them

Researcher Arthur Aron developed 36 questions to ask your

significant other and to help people break through each of the
intimacy levels. Check them out!

Table of Contents

Do you know the right questions to ask your significant other?

I mean, have you really, truly, deeply asked the best questions to get to
know them as a person?

I’m a victim of the How Trap. The How Trap is when you are stuck
only asking “How are you?” and nothing more. In the How Trap you
get caught up in day-to-day logistics and check-ins. 
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Put simply:

I don’t want to know just how you are. I want to know who you are.
You know you are in the How Trap if:

Most of your questions start with “how.” Like “how are you?” or

“how are the kids?” or “how are you feeling?” or even, “how was your

day?” These only touch the surface.

You don’t make eye contact while you speak. You are doing the

dishes, driving or cleaning up the house when you speak. This means

your attention is not going deep.

You rely on social media posts to check-in. Do you feel like you

already know everything that is going on in your people’s lives

because you follow them on social media? Sometimes this gets you

caught in the how trap.

Sometimes we feel like we really know someone, but on the surface

we are only familiar with the day-to-day. 

For example, when my husband and I get really busy, we can go days
without asking any questions beyond logistics-type questions. We see
each other at the end of the day and ask “How was your day?” and we ×
go through what we did and what happened. We talk about plans for
the weekend and updates from friends we saw on Facebook.

The other day, I had this big Aha moment… 

I realized we were talking, but we weren’t sharing.

I think this happens with couples, friendships, and especially parents

and their kids. We get so wrapped up in the day-to-day that we are
lucky to get to the ‘how are you?’ but we very rarely get to the ‘who
are you?’ Especially when you have known someone for a long time,
we forget to ask how they have changed. We let the deeper questions
fade away.

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The Science of Intimacy

Psychology Professor Dan McAdams has studied what it takes to truly

know someone. He believes there are “three levels of knowing” and
that these are the three stages people progress through to become
intimate friends, lovers, or companions.

Level 1: General Traits At this level, you get to know someone’s

general personality traits. Speci cally, where they fall on the Big 5

spectrum: how high or low they are in Openness, Conscientiousness,

Extroversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism. See our overview of

the personality traits here.

Level 2: Personal Concerns This is where someone gets to know a

person’s goals, values, and motivations. They also get a broader

picture of the decisions and attitudes that shape their life.

Level 3: Self-Narrative Finally, when you truly know someone, you

know the stories they tell themselves about themselves—how they have

made sense of their journey and purpose through life.

The question is: How do you move through these three levels? 

Level 1 is easy—typical conversation can help you with this. 

Level 2 can happen naturally as you live with someone, travel with
someone, and have shared experiences. 

But Level 3 only can be done purposefully and with the right questions
in a safe space. This brings me to the 36 couple questions.

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How to Ask the 36 Questions

Grab a Partner

Find your significant other, friend, parent, brother, sister, travel

buddy, stranger you met online… really, ANYONE you want to get a
little closer with! Make sure they are interested in completing the 36
questions with you.

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Find Your Space

Find that quiet place where you won’t be interrupted for at least 45
minutes to an hour. The last thing you want is to be interrupted by a
phone call from your landlord! 

READ:  You do NOT have to do these all in one sitting—in fact, I

recommend against it. Sometimes, intimacy takes time to build up. So
start with one per dinner perhaps or one per car ride. Take your time,
savor them, expand on them, and see where they take you. One of my
friends and I answer one of these each week.

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Focus on the Means Not the End

The questions are categorized in three different sets, with each set of
questions a little bit more personal than the last. You’ll take turns
with your partner asking these questions, and both answering the
questions.  ×

It’s important to NOT skip the questions, even if you know the answer
to them. Keep in mind, vulnerability brings people closer. The point
of these questions is to have sustained, escalating, and reciprocal self-
disclosure. Take time having both people answer the questions and
truly listen to the answers without judgment.

It’ll look something like this:

Person A asks the rst question.

Person B answers the rst question.

Deep discussion! Aha moments! Surprises!

Person A answers the rst question.

Deep discussion! Aha moments! Surprises!

Person B asks the second question.

And so on…

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It’s Not Polite to Stare

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When you’re finished asking the questions, there is ONE more step
that the original experiment suggests:
Stare in your partner’s eyes for four minutes.

This step is completely optional, but according to a 2019 study by

Japanese researchers, eye contact activates the special parts of our
brain responsible for empathy. If you really take the time to look into
your partner’s eyes, it’ll be a special finish to your round of questions! 

Just make sure to blink… otherwise, that’s just a little bit creepy.

↑ Table of Contents ↑

The 36 Questions

These 36 questions were developed to help people break through each

of the intimacy levels. You can do these with your partner or with
friends. I highly recommend them to parents and teens!

You can even print these out or email them to a friend!

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↑ Table of Contents ↑

Set 1 Questions
 1. Given the choice of anyone in the world, whom would you want as a

dinner guest?

2. Would you like to be famous? In what way?

3. Before making a phone call, do you ever rehearse what you’re going

to say? Why?

4. What would constitute a perfect day for you?

5. When did you last sing to yourself? To someone else?

6. If you were able to live to the age of 90 and retain either the mind or

body of a 30-year old for the last 60 years of your life, which would

you choose?

7. Do you have a secret hunch about how you will die?

8. Name three things you and your partner appear to have in common.

9. For what in your life do you feel most grateful?

10. If you could change anything about the way you were raised, what

would it be?

11. Take four minutes and tell your partner your life story in as much

detail as possible.

12. If you could wake up tomorrow having gained one quality or ability,

what would it be?

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Set 2 Deep Questions

13. If a crystal ball could tell you the truth about yourself, your life, the

future, or anything else, what would you want to know?

14. Is there something that you’ve dreamed of doing for a long time?

Why haven’t you done it?

15. What is the greatest accomplishment of your life?

16. What do you value most in a friendship?

17. What is your most treasured memory?

18. What is your most terrible memory?

19. If you knew that in one year you would die suddenly, would you

change anything about the way you are living now? Why?

20. What does friendship mean to you?

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21. What roles do love and a ection play in your life?

22. Alternate sharing something you consider a positive characteristic

of your partner. Share a total of ve items.

23. How close and warm is your family? Do you feel your childhood was

happier than most other people’s?

24. How do you feel about your relationship with your mother?

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Set 3 Deeper Questions

25. Make three true “we” statements each. For instance, “we are both in

this room feeling…”

26. Complete this sentence: “I wish I had someone with whom I could

share…”

27. If you were going to become a close friend with your partner, please

share what would be important for him or her to know.

28. Tell your partner what you like about them: Be honest this time,

saying things that you might not say to someone you’ve just met.

29. Share with your partner an embarrassing moment in your life.

30. When did you last cry in front of another person? By yourself?

31. Tell your partner something that you like about them already.

32. What, if anything, is too serious to be joked about?

33. If you were to die this evening with no opportunity to communicate

with anyone, what would you most regret not having told someone?

Why haven’t you told them yet?

34. Your house, containing everything you own, catches re. After

saving your loved ones and pets, you have time to safely make a nal

dash to save any one item. What would it be? Why?

35. Of all the people in your family, whose death would you nd most

disturbing? Why?

36. Share a personal problem and ask your partner’s advice on how he

or she might handle it. Also, ask your partner to re ect back to you

how you seem to be feeling about the problem you have chosen.

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Do The 36 Questions Actually

Work?
To find out if the questions actually work, let’s turn to the creator of
the 36 questions—a psychology professor named Arthur Aron. 

“I looked for the research on love, but there was almost none” —
Arthur Aron

Because there was a lack of love in the scientific community, Aron

wondered: What’s the best way to create love between two people?

So after numerous tests, he came up with these deliciously intimate

questions to bring strangers closer together.

And when he put these 36 questions to the test, he found that…

Pairs of strangers who asked these 36 questions felt greater

closeness than strangers who simply engaged in small talk.

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How about couples in a long-term relationship? When I asked my
husband these questions on a Friday date night, it was immediately a
step up from the usual “how was your day” spiel. We were both
hooked as we fired off these questions back and forth! And the best
part?

We both learned something new about each other. 

That night, we finished dinner saying to each other, “Wow! I didn’t

know that about you!” 

And we aren’t the only ones that felt that way.

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Here’s What Others Say About the 36 Questions

A woman asked her boyfriend of ve years the 36 questions.

What she said: “I realize that this dialogue is entirely new for us, and
that I’ve learned something about my boyfriend.”

A millennial woman asked these questions with a stranger she just

met online.

What she said: “The 36 Questions warp speed two strangers into
intimacy and vulnerability before they know whether or not a
relationship is even possible.”

New York Times writer Mandy Len Catron tried it at the bar with

her university acquaintance.

What she said: “You’re probably wondering if he and I fell in love.

Well, we did.”
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In Aron’s original experiment, two participants of the experiment even
got married! They also invited the entire lab to their wedding
ceremony.
So are you ready to try the 36 questions yourself? Maybe you’ll even
fall in love!* 

*results not guaranteed.

↑ Table of Contents ↑

Bonus: The 36 Questions in Action

Check out these real life strangers asking each other the deep stuff.
You won’t believe what happens at the end!

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 A B O U T VA N E S S A VA N E D WA R D S

Vanessa Van Edwards is a national best selling author & founder at

Science of People. Her groundbreaking book, Captivate: The
Science of Succeeding with People has been translated into more
than 16 languages. As a recovering awkward person, Vanessa helps
millions find their inner charisma. She regularly leads innovative
corporate workshops and helps thousands of individual
professionals in her online program People School. Vanessa works
with entrepreneurs, growing businesses, and trillion dollar
companies; and has been featured on CNN, BBC, CBS, Fast Company,
Inc., Entrepreneur Magazine, USA Today, the Today Show and many
more.

9 replies on “36 Deep Questions to Ask Your

Signi cant Other So You Can Truly Know Them”

×
AYO UB A L H A R C H A L

This is so f***ing awesome, I just don’t know what to say. They

are super helpful because I get to escape the mundane questions

& there are lots of people I’m interested in knowing more about

so these de nitely help. Thank you so much, interesting stu as

always.

J U LY 2 9 , 2 0 2 0 AT 4 :4 6 PM - R EPLY

B O UL O U

This for Carl,

#28 is more personal toward the person you already know.

#31 you could say to you close friend, at the same time you could

say it to a completely new person you just said 2.

M A Y 1 , 2 0 2 0 AT 3 :5 9 PM - R EPLY

C AR L

Thank you for your work! You’re really good at explaining thing.

Question on your “36 questions to ask your signi cant other”:

How are #28 & #31 di erent?

M A R C H 2 5 , 2 0 2 0 AT 9 :1 0 A M - R EPLY

E V E LY N S M I TH ×
Fascinating! True that we usually just focus on the day to day

questions, often taking for granted the deeper questions that can
truly strengthen our relationships. I’m totally going to try these

with my husband. Thanks for the great article!

J U LY 1 9 , 2 0 1 7 AT 1 2 :1 9 PM - R EPLY

ADAM

Thanks heaps Team Science Of People. I will be asking these to

my wife as well as answering them to her as well

M A Y 2 1 , 2 0 1 6 AT 1 0 :1 7 A M - R EPLY

TA M I

After 35 years of marriage, we have been doing the ” day to day”

questions. These questions will help us really share who we are

now!

JA N UA RY 1 , 2 0 1 6 AT 8 :1 7 PM - R EPLY

DAN IE L L E M C R AE

Absolutely, Tami. I hope these questions are just the start to

more meaningful conversations with your spouse!

×
Danielle | Science of People Team
 JA N UA RY 4 , 2 0 1 6 AT 3 :2 1 PM - R EPLY

C A E L A N H UN TR E S S

I’m bringing this list with me on my next date with my wife.

Great conversations will come out of this! Thanks, Vanessa.

OC T OB ER 1 5 , 2 0 1 5 AT 1 1 :3 0 A M - R EPLY

DAN IE L L E M C R AE

Awesome, Caelan! We hope you two have fun with it!

Danielle | Science of People Team

OC T OB ER 1 5 , 2 0 1 5 AT 1 1 :4 4 A M - R EPLY

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