Associations of Childhood Maltreatment and Attachment Styles with Romantic Breakup Grief Severity: The Role of Emotional Suppression

Childhood maltreatment (CM) and insecure attachment styles may partly explain grief severity following romantic breakup. Empirical studies examining the factors that could possibly explain this association, however, remain sparse. The present study tested whether the relations among CM, attachment styles, and romantic breakup grief severity could be explained by emotional suppression in Iranian college students. In a cross-sectional study, 239 Iranian college students (ages 18–45; M = 24.11, SD = 15.29; 50.6% women) with a recent romantic breakup experience were recruited from University of Tabriz. Participants completed a diagnostic interview and self-report battery, including the Persian version of the Child Abuse Self-Reported Scale, Revised Adult Attachment Scale, Romantic Breakup Grief Inventory, and Weinberger Adjustment Inventory. Structural equation modeling was used to empirically explore the relations among variables. Results indicated that those who reported higher levels of CM also reported higher levels of romantic breakup grief. Attachment closeness showed a significant negative and direct effect on romantic breakup grief severity. However, attachment anxiety was positively associated with greater levels of romantic breakup grief. Bootstrapping results showed that CM might affect romantic breakup grief severity via emotional suppression. Furthermore, attachment closeness and attachment anxiety exerted indirect effects on romantic breakup grief severity through emotional suppression. Clinical and empirical implications are discussed.

Language left behind on social media exposes the emotional and cognitive costs of a romantic breakup

Using archived social media data, the language signatures of people going through breakups were mapped. Text analyses were conducted on 1,027,541 posts from 6,803 Reddit users who had posted about their breakups. The posts include users’ Reddit history in the 2 y surrounding their breakups across the various domains of their life, not just posts pertaining to their relationship. Language markers of an impending breakup were evident 3 mo before the event, peaking on the week of the breakup and returning to baseline 6 mo later. Signs included an increase in I-words, we-words, and cognitive processing words (characteristic of depression, collective focus, and the meaning-making process, respectively) and drops in analytic thinking (indicating more personal and informal language). The patterns held even when people were posting to groups unrelated to breakups and other relationship topics. People who posted about their breakup for longer time periods were less well-adjusted a year after their breakup compared to short-term posters. The language patterns seen for breakups replicated for users going through divorce (n = 5,144; 1,109,867 posts) or other types of upheavals (n = 51,357; 11,081,882 posts). The cognitive underpinnings of emotional upheavals are discussed using language as a lens.

Pharmacotherapy for Reducing the Grieving Process of Romantic Relationship Breakup: A Clinical Trial

: The breakup of a romantic relationship imposes considerable grief to individuals and is actually a psychological and psychiatric challenge. The current study is a clinical trial of a pharmacologic agent reducing post-relationship grief. 90 female patients with the mean age of 29.55 ± 4.65 years were divided into two groups as an intervention group (n = 45) and the control group (n = 45). All patients were experiencing a diagnosed depression due to a romantic breakup during the last six months. The control group received a standard pharmacotherapy for depression, which was 50 mg sertraline daily. The intervention group received an additional 0.05 mg Clonidine daily. The treatment was continued for 8 weeks, and the visual analog scale evaluated the subjective report of the patients for grief and intensity of love. Comparison of pre-treatment and post-treatment grief and intensity of love were analyzed using ANOVA. Clonidine induced a significant decrease in the post-breakup grief with no significant change in the intensity of love. This pharmacotherapy is suggested for better management of romantic breakup.

Coping and Unwanted Pursuit Behaviours Following Breakups in Young Adulthood

Unwanted pursuit behaviours (UPBs) comprise repeated and unwanted efforts to establish intimate contact in the form of harassing, tracking, and monitoring. These are common among young adults following the breakup of a romantic relationship, typically by the rejected partner. The relational goal pursuit theory (RGPT) proposes that UPB users overestimate the importance of a relationship to higher-order goals. This study assessed how well a new coping-based approach and the RGPT model predicted UPB frequency and scope. Two hundred participants (50% female; aged 19–24) completed an anonymous online survey. Ruminating was linked to both greater frequency and scope of UPB use. Higher levels of emotion-focused coping and perceived self-efficacy to re-establish intimacy were linked to the use of a wider scope of unwanted pursuit behaviours. Insights gained from UPB users are necessary for understanding mechanisms associated with the turbulent and distressing aftermath of a romantic breakup.

Remaining Facebook versus Face-to-Face Friends after a Romantic Breakup

The study queried whether the relational characteristics that influence individuals to remain face-to-face friends with former romantic partners following a break up also impact the decisions to remain Facebook “friends” with former romantic partners. The sample included over 300 young adults who met two criteria: They maintained an active Facebook account and reported a pre-marital, romantic break-up. The results revealed that the variables that impact post-dissolution friendship decisions of former romantic partners in the face-to-face context (quantity of relational investments, relational satisfaction, and relational disengagement strategies) do not impact former romantic partners' decisions to maintain or dissolve Facebook friendships. These results provide evidence that romantic partners may experience different relational motivations and dynamics in online versus off-line venues.