Negotiating Breakups and Renewals in On-Again/Off-Again Dating Relationships: Traversing the Transitions

Using phase-oriented interviews (N = 65), this study explored how partners in on-again/off-again relationships negotiated the turning points of breakups and renewals in their relationships. The qualitative analysis revealed themes reflecting transition initiation (i.e., the communication or behavior...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inCommunication quarterly Vol. 60; no. 2; pp. 165 - 189
Main Authors Dailey, René M., Rossetto, Kelly R., McCracken, Andrea A., Jin, Borae, Green, Erik W.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published University Park Taylor & Francis Group 01.04.2012
Eastern Communication Association
Subjects
Breakups
Communication
Dating Relationships
Emotions
On-Again/off-Again Relationships
Personal relationships
Relational Transitions
Renewals
Studies
Turning Points
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Summary:Using phase-oriented interviews (N = 65), this study explored how partners in on-again/off-again relationships negotiated the turning points of breakups and renewals in their relationships. The qualitative analysis revealed themes reflecting transition initiation (i.e., the communication or behavior instigating the transitions) as well as themes reflecting how partners enacted and managed the transitions (e.g., viewing transitions as provisional, resolving past problems and planning for new issues, and using external factors to maintain the transition). Navigating the relational transitions created a struggle for some partners, but the negotiation process elicited feelings of a fresh start for others. Collectively, the themes highlight factors related to communication as well as partners' subjective interpretations, which may be useful in further understanding how partners negotiate relational transitions.
ISSN:0146-3373
1746-4102
DOI:10.1080/01463373.2012.668847