Sara Nasserzadeh Authors “Love by Design” in Time for Valentine’s Day

Love by Design: 6 Ingredients to Build a Lifetime of Love, a new book by alum and world-renowned social psychologist Sarah Nasserzadeh, PhD, will be released this February in time for Valentine's Day.

Grounded in two decades of original research and work with couples from around the world, Nasserzadeh’s Love by Design introduces a groundbreaking new foundation for love: The Emergent Love Model. The book is based on the premise that many of us were raised with the idea that true love means finding our "other half" and that a spark is the best foundation for successful long-term partnerships and marriages. However, Dr. Nasserzadeh believes successful partnerships must cultivate six core relational ingredients for love to emerge. The book offers readers dozens of exercises and reflection prompts that help build a new foundation for ‘coupledom,’ which she believes will thrive for a lifetime. 

In the book’s acknowledgments, she credits PAU and Dr. Donna Sheperis for deepening her skills. Dr. Sheperis said, “I was fortunate to consult with Sara and her husband, a statistician, on an assessment they developed after she graduated, and she has always been a promoter of her PAU experience.

Dr. Nasserzadeh, a native of Iran, graduated from PAU in 2020 with an MA in Counseling. She is a social psychologist, psychosexual therapist, and relationship expert. She has presented more than 500 keynote addresses and workshops on a variety of topics across the globe. She has been a senior cultural advisor and strategic consultant for governments, international NGOs, United Nations-affiliated agencies, Fortune 500 companies, academic institutions, and professional organizations. She has a multitude of articles, books, and book chapters to her credit. Her work has also been featured in NPR, BBC, ABC, CNN, and USA Today. She is based in Los Angeles, CA.