affections

Affections refer to the range of emotional states and dispositions toward others, especially feelings of fondness, warmth, and attachment. In everyday use, affection describes kindness and tenderness toward individuals such as family, friends, or partners, and it underlies intimate relationships as well as social bonds in communities. The term traces to Latin affectus, through Old French affeccion, signaling a disposition or mood.

In psychology, affect is the observable expression of emotion, while affection more often denotes the inward feeling and the motivational component behind behaviors of caring and closeness. Affections can be predominantly positive, such as affection, love, and admiration, or negative if marked by hostility or aversion, though the common usage tends toward warmth and closeness. Expressions of affection appear in verbal communication, touch, proximity, and caregiving actions, and they vary across cultures and contexts. Affection develops across the lifespan, with early attachments shaping later relationships and social functioning.

Social and relational theories view affection as a bonding mechanism that promotes cooperation, trust, and resilience. In research, affection is measured through self-report scales and behavioral indicators, and it intersects with concepts such as empathy, attachment, and mood. Some disciplinary domains distinguish affect (the broader emotional state) from specific affectionate attitudes, but in everyday language the terms overlap.

Historically, the word affection has also described diseases or conditions affecting a body part, especially in medical texts where 'affections' referred to illnesses or ailments. In contemporary usage, this sense is largely archaic outside of medical historiography.