Integration and expansion of qualitative analyses of relationship dissolution through ghosting

Abstract

Ghosting is a romantic relationship breakup strategy that includes severing communication between partners. However, inconsistencies in existing conceptualizations of ghosting indicate a lack of agreement between scholars studying this phenomenon. Consequently, a need exists to establish an empirically derived definition and to explore the process of, motivations behind and consequences of ghosting. The current authors and another research team, LeFebvre et al. (2019), independently conducted qualitative studies that sought to achieve these aims. We used a bottom-up approach to compare our thematic analyses to those of LeFebvre et al. We identified replicable themes and discrepancies with their work from which we propose a revised definition of ghosting that integrates findings from each research team.

A multi-study examination of attachment and implicit theories of relationships in ghosting experiences

“…If they selected, “No,” then they were presented with the description of ghosting from the popular press: “Ghosting is ‘ending a romantic relationship by cutting off all contact and ignoring the former partner’s attempts to reach out’ (Safronova, 2015). ” This popular press description was used due to the timing of the study’s conceptualization (i.e., prior to the Koesseler et al, 2019b pre-print with a posited definition) and for ease of understanding among the participants. All participants then selected as many behaviors as they believed ghosting consisted of (see Table 1).…”

“…Ghosting is a relationship dissolution strategy that is a modern-day manifestation of avoidance/withdrawal. Ghosting has been defined as unilaterally dissolving a relationship by cutting off communication (Freedman et al, 2019; Koessler et al, 2019b; LeFebvre, 2017). Although avoidance/withdrawal has been recognized as a dissolution strategy for some time (Baxter, 1982), ghosting often occurs via the ceasing of technology-mediated communication (e.g., not texting, unfriending, blocking on social media; LeFebvre, 2017).…”

“…Ghosting seems to be particularly common, though, on dating apps (De Wiele & Campbell, 2019; Timmermans et al, 2020) and among emerging adults. For example, two-thirds of college students report having been an initiator of ghosting (i.e., ghoster) and three-quarters had been the recipient (i.e., ghostee) within romantic relationships (Koessler et al, 2019b). On the other hand, samples with broader age ranges report lower percentages; approximately one-fifth of participants had been a ghoster within romantic relationships and one-quarter had been a ghostee (Freedman et al, 2019).…”

“…Individuals perceive a variety of motives for ghosting (Koessler et al, 2019a, 2019b; LeFebvre et al, 2019, 2020; Manning et al, 2019; Timmermans et al, 2020). Ghosting may be a favorable dissolution strategy for some: ghosters experience less distress than individuals who engage in more direct dissolution strategies (Koessler et al, 2019a).…”

“…Ghosting is often perceived as an unacceptable relationship termination strategy, but a large proportion of individuals have experienced ghosting in a romantic context (Freedman et al, 2019; Koessler et al, 2019b; LeFebvre et al, 2019; Timmermans et al, 2020). Yet less is known about individual differences in ghosting experiences.…”