Do you wonder why there are many people who don't want to get married? Well, don't do it anymore because the answer is: most of these people fear commitment. They are gamophobic. In the Greek language Gamo means marriage and Phobos means phobia. Gamophobia is known to parallel the fear of death. A gamophobic does not necessarily have to have more than one romantic partner in their life. He or she may stay with one person and still be afraid of marriage. Most gamophobes would rather die as bachelors. It appears that gamophobia affects men more than women due to the way they are seen as family providers and this causes men to fear commitment. Applying Maslow's (1943) theory of human motivation, gamophobia is triggered in a person through the need for self-realization, self-esteem and belonging. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Maslow's theory (1943) is a five-level model of human needs, often displayed in a pyramid. It has five levels important to human needs. Psychological needs come first: water, food, shelter. Secondly, security needs safety and survival. Third: Belonging and love needs: family, friends and love partners. Fourth, esteem needs: trust, prestige and self-love. Fifth, Self-Actualization: Achievements, Talents, and Hobbies. These are the crucial factors of every person's life (McLeod, 2018). How can a person fear marriage? What is the cause? The main causes of gamophobia are personal insecurity, related painful incidents or depression. Insecurities make people feel bad about themselves. It makes them believe that they will never find a loyal love partner; therefore triggers fear of commitment. Painful incidents can be a reason why people fear marriage and commitment. People who grew up with divorced parents are more likely to dislike marriage and fear commitment. Marriage failure is an example of a painful incident that would make one fear commitment. Gamophobia can also be caused by depression. A depressed individual would be willing to get married but would still be anxious about going through the process. This happens due to lack of self-confidence and sexual confidence. The negative side of marriage and commitment would remain in a person's thoughts for a long time. It traumatizes a person by causing them to engage in hatred. Gamophobics need a feeling of love and belonging. Maslow states in his theory that we all need intimacy, love and affection (Maslow, 1943). Gamophobics tend to think too much about what their life with a significant other will be like. Some think they can't be with just one love partner, so they end up cheating. Other gamophobes fear being betrayed. They are not emotionally available for marriage, but they want to be loved. Some fear commitment, but want to get married as long as it is successful. The problem is that no one knows if a marriage will keep two love partners together forever. Gamophobics never believe in happy endings. Gamophobics need to understand that love exists. They need to understand that there have been many examples of happily married couples. People can change their perception of commitment if they surround themselves with happily married couples (Schilling, 2019, para. 4). Self-confidence and self-love are crucial to a successful relationship, but without them, people will experience relationship failures, which trigger gamophobia. Maslow had to classify esteem needs into categories: self-esteem and desire for reputation. In this case, a gamophobic needs self-esteem.