Breakup Adjustment in Young Adulthood

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to assess the ability of young adults to adjust to the breakup of a romantic relationship by examining the possible predictors. The sample comprised 140 women and 143 men. Simultaneous regression analysis indicated that initiator status, existence of a new partner, certainty of the reasons for the breakup, and perceived social support were significant predictors and accounted for 18% of the variance in the measure of adjustment to breakup.

Breaking Up (With a Friend) Is Hard to Do: An Examination of Friendship Dissolution Among Early Adolescents

“…Ways in Which Friendships End. Previous work on adult romantic relationships indicates that clarity surrounding breakups is associated with better emotional adjustment (Barutçu Yıldırım & Demir, 2015). Similarly, in the case of friendship breakups, ambiguity may foster rumination (Vine, Aldao, & Nolen-Hoeksema, 2014) and anxious speculation about why the relationship ended.…”

“…Although J. C. Bowker's (2011) study assessed the intensity of the emotional responses, it did not account for how long the feelings endured. In romantic relationships, the time following a breakup during which a person recovers from the fallout is referred to as the adjustment period and can vary in length depending on the person and the relationship (Barutçu Yıldırım & Demir, 2015). The duration of emotional responses to friendship dissolution should be similarly considered.…”

“…Associations between ways of ending a friendship and emotional reactions may differ based on whether the method of ending the relationship is enacted by the focal adolescent or by their former friend. Research suggests that being the initiator of a breakup is related to better emotional outcomes following the breakup (Barutçu Yıldırım & Demir, 2015;Sprecher, 1994), such that being rejected led to greater risk for depression, lowered selfesteem, and a tendency to ruminate (Perilloux & Buss, 2008). Similarly, peer rejection in adolescence is associated with a host of negative reactions (Prinstein et al, 2018).…”

Romantic Relationship Dissolution in Emerging Adulthood

“…First, through scale validation, we now have a tool to evaluate adolescents’ and emerging adults’ reasons for ending their romantic relationships that is grounded in developmental theory. In addition to providing a standardized measure for developmental researchers, the Youth Attributions of Romantic Dissolutions (YARD) can help to provide clarity for young people who experience breakups, which in turn facilitates the healing process (Barutçu Yildirim & Demir, 2015). The YARD can be utilized within relationship education programs such as Relationship U discussed by Vennum and colleagues (2017), possibly shedding light on the reasons why areas of the intervention were successful in helping young people dissolve relationships adaptively.…”

Why Did It End? Breakup Reasons of Youth of Different Gender, Dating Stages, and Ages

“…This research tells us that ex-partners often try to make sense of the reasons for the dissolution of the relationship (Harvey, Weber, Yarkin, & Stewart, 1982; Weber, 1992) as a way to attribute responsibility for relationship failure and organize their understanding of the events leading up to the dissolution (Weiss, 1975). Certainty about breakup accounts has been linked to post-relationship adjustment and ability to “move on” after relationship termination (Barutçu Yildirim & Demir, 2015). Thus, understanding the reasons “why” relationships fall apart in adolescence and emerging adulthood may help us understand the mechanisms that can explain youths’ poor post-relationship adjustment and distinguish it from nonproblematic outcomes.…”