As people worldwide get ready for romance on Valentine's Day, a new study has found that adults are more likely to have successful romantic relationships if they had a good relationship with their parents when they were teenagers.

According to the findings, the type of relationship a person had with their parents when they were a teenager can influence their chances of romantic success up to 15 years later.

The results were based on a survey of almost 3,000 people who had been questioned at three different stages of live - between the ages of 12 and 32.

The study found a ‘small but important link between parent-adolescent relationship quality and intimate relationships 15 years later'.

"The effects can be long-lasting," commented relationship researcher, Matt Johnson, of the University of Alberta.

The study found that people who had good relationships with their parents during their teens had a higher quality of romantic relationships in adulthood.

"People tend to compartmentalise their relationships. They tend not to see the connection between one kind, such as family relations, and another, like couple unions. But understanding your contribution to the relationship with your parents would be important to recognising any tendency to replicate behaviour - positive or negative - in an intimate relationship," Mr Johnson said.

However, he added that this does not mean that parents should be blamed if a person is having problems in their romantic relationship.

"It is important to recognise everyone has a role to play in creating a healthy relationship, and each person needs to take responsibility for their contribution to that dynamic," he said.

Details of these findings are published in the Journal of Marriage and Family.