What makes the perfect partner? Scientists reveal how women of different ages envisage the man of their dreams – so, do you fit the bill?

Psychologists suggest that there are five stages of love: butterflies, building up, assimilation, honesty and stability.

Each of these phases has a different impact on our psyche and health, eHarmony researchers discovered in a 2014 study.

1) Butterflies

Characterized by intense infatuation and sexual attraction, symptoms couples noted included weight loss (30 percent) and a lack of productivity (39 percent).

Biologically, both men and women are reported to produce more of the sex hormones testosterone and estrogen during this early phase of dating.

As a result, more than half (56 percent) noticed an increase in their libido.

2) Building

As the initial attraction gives way to learning more about each other, the honeymoon phase subsides and a couple begins to build their relationship.

According to eHarmony research, around three percent of Brits in a relationship are currently in the second phase.

The body releases neurochemicals called monoamines, which increase the heart rate, cause a wave of intense pleasure and mimic the effects of Class A drugs.

The biological effect culminates in a feeling of 'happy anxiety', where people can think of little else but their blossoming relationship.

Forty-four percent of study participants noted a lack of sleep, while 29 percent reported that their attention span was negatively affected.

3) Assimilation

After determining whether the other is “right,” phase three forces the couple to question whether the “relationship” itself is right.

Questions about the future of the union and establishing boundaries in the relationship can lead to an increase in stress levels, according to 27 percent of survey participants.

Each of the five stages of a relationship has a different impact on our psyche and health, eHarmony researchers found in a 2014 study (stock image)

4) Honesty

Phase three is combined with phase four, where people open up and show the 'real you' and the first real increase in stress levels and anxiety occurs.

'This phase addresses the concept behind how we all put on our best faces, through social media we edit both our lives and our photos to make it seem like everything is fine,' psychologist Dr Linda Papadopoulos, who assisted with the study , told MailOnline.

Opening up caused feelings of doubt and increased vulnerability in 15 percent of the participants.

5) Stability

If a couple can get through the emotional rollercoaster of the first four stages, the fifth and final stage, stability, brings with it a greater level of trust and intimacy.

eHarmony found that 50 percent of respondents had reached this stage, and 23 percent reported feeling happier as a result.

Biologically speaking, vasopressin – a powerful hormone released by men and women during orgasm – strengthens feelings of attachment.

Meanwhile, oxytocin – released during childbirth – deepens feelings of attachment.

'This is where we're seeing a real level of satisfaction,' Dr Papadopolous told MailOnline.

'We discovered that the body releases wonderful hormones that help couples bond. We noticed a real sense of attachment, and a feeling of 'you've got my back and I've got yours'.'