Although relational research predominantly conceptualizes romantic relationships as either together or apart, some relationships break up and renew (i.e., on-again/off-again relationships). Partners’ accounts of on-again/off-again relational experiences were qualitatively analyzed to explore both reasons for breakups and reasons for renewals. Themes were interpreted within an interdependence framework to explain why partners dissolved as well as renewed their relationships. The themes in combination suggest renewals occurred due to dissatisfying experiences with alternative relationship partners and an increase in outcomes (i.e., rewards minus costs) after breakups. Partners’ post-dissolution contact and their uncertainty about relational status may have further facilitated renewals. More generally, the themes suggest, for on-again/ off-again partners, breakups did not indicate the end of interdependence but rather a redefinition of the relationship.
Adams, J.M., & Spain, J.S. ( 1999). The dynamics of interpersonal commitment and the issue of salience. In J. M. Adams & W. H. Jones (Eds.), Handbook of interpersonal commitment and relationship stability (pp. 165-179). New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers.
2.
Agnew, C.R., Arriaga, X.B., & Goodfriend, W. (2006, July). On the (mis)measurement of premarital relationship breakup. Paper present at the International Association of Relationship Research Conference, Rethymno, Crete.
3.
Arriaga, X.B. ( 2001). The ups and downs of dating: Fluctuations in satisfaction in newly formed romantic relationships. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 80, 754-765.
4.
Attridge, M., Berscheid, E., & Simpson, J.A. ( 1995). Predicting relationship stability from both partners versus one. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 69, 254-268.
5.
Baxter, J., & Eyles, J. ( 1997). Evaluative qualitative research in social geography: Establishing ‘rigour’ in interview analysis. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 22, 505-525.
6.
Bevan, J.L., Cameron, K.A., & Dillow, M.R. ( 2003). One more try: Compliance-gaining strategies associated with romantic reconciliation attempts. Southern Communication Journal, 68, 121-135.
7.
Braiker, H.B., & Kelley, H.H. ( 1979). Conflict in the development of close relationships. In R. L. Burgess & T. L. Huston (Eds.), Social exchange in developing relationships (pp. 135-168). New York: Academic Press.
8.
Busboom, A.L., Collins, D.M., Givertz, M.D., & Levin, L.A. ( 2002). Can we still be friends? Resources and barriers to friendship quality after romantic relationship dissolution. Personal Relationships, 9, 215-223.
9.
Conville, R.L. ( 1987). Relational transitions: Inquiry into their structure and function. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships , 5, 423-437.
10.
Cupach, W.R., & Metts, S. ( 1986). Accounts of relational dissolution: A comparison of marital and non-marital relationships. Communication Monographs, 53, 311-334.
11.
Cupach, W.R., & Metts, S. ( 2002). The persistence of reconciliation attempts following the dissolution of romantic relationships. Paper presented at the 11th International Conference on Personal Relationships. Halifax, Nova Scotia.
12.
Davis, K.E., Ace, A., & Andra, M. ( 2000). Stalking perpetrators and psychological maltreatment of partners: Anger-jealousy, attachment insecurity, need for control, and break-up context. Violence and Victims, 15, 407-425.
13.
Felmlee, D., Sprecher, S., & Bassin, E. ( 1990). The dissolution of intimate relationships: A hazard model . Social Psychology Quarterly, 53, 13-30.
14.
Fitzpatrick, M.A., & Sollie, D.L. ( 1999). Influence of individual and interpersonal factors on satisfaction and stability in romantic relationship. Personal Relationships, 6, 337-350.
15.
Fletcher, G.J.O., Fincham, F., Cramer, L., & Heron, N. ( 1987). The role of attributions in close relationships. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 53, 481-489.
16.
Foley, L., & Fraser, J. ( 1998). A research note on post-dating relationships: The social embeddedness of redefining romantic couplings. Sociological Perspectives, 41, 209-219.
17.
Frazier, P.A., & Cook, S.W. ( 1993). Correlates of distress following heterosexual relationship dissolution. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships , 10, 55-67.
18.
Glaser, B.G. ( 1965). The constant comparative method of qualitative analysis . Social Problems, 12, 436-445.
19.
Hill, C.T., Rubin, Z., & Peplau, L.A. ( 1976). Breakups before marriage: The end of 103 affairs. Journal of Social Issues, 32, 147-168.
20.
Johnson, M.P. ( 1982). Social and cognitive features of the dissolution of commitment to relationships. In S. Duck (Ed.), Personal Relationships: Dissolving personal relationships (Vol. 4; pp. 51-73). New York: Academic Press.
21.
Karney, B.R., Bradbury, T.N., & Johnson, M.D. ( 1999). Deconstructing stability: The distinction between the course of a close relationship and its endpoint. In J. M. Adams & W. H. Jones (Eds.), Handbook of interpersonal commitment and relationship stability (pp. 481-499). New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers.
22.
Kelley, H.H. ( 1979). Personal relationships: Their structures and processes . Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum .
23.
Kelley, H.H. ( 1983). Love and commitment. In H. H. Kelley, E. Berscheid, A. Christensen, J. H. Harvey, T. L. Huston, G. Levinger, et al. (Eds.), Close relationships (pp. 265-314). New York: W.H. Freeman and Company.
24.
Kelley, H.H., .Berscheid, E., Christensen, A., Harvey, J.H., . Huston, T.L., . Levinger, et al. (1983). Analyzing close relationships. In H. H. Kelley, E. Berscheid, A. Christensen, J. H. Harvey, T. L. Huston, G. Levinger, et al. (Eds.), Close relationships (pp. 20-67). New York: W.H. Freeman and Company.
25.
Kelley, H.H., & Thibaut, J.W. ( 1978). Interpersonal relations: A theory of interdependence . New York: John Wiley & Sons .
26.
Kirkpatrick, L.A., & Hazan, C. ( 1994). Attachment style and close relationships: A four-year prospective study. Personal Relationships, 1, 123-142.
27.
Knobloch, L.K. ( 2007). Perceptions of turmoil within courtship: Associations with intimacy, relational uncertainty, and interference with partners. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 24, 363-384.
28.
Knobloch, L.K. ( 2008). The content of relational uncertainty within marriage . Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 25, 467-495.
29.
Koenig Kellas, J., Bean, D., Cunningham, C., & Cheng, K.Y. ( 2008). The ex-files: Trajectories, turning points, and the adjustment in the development of post-dissolutional relationships. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 25, 23-50.
30.
Langhinrichsen-Rohling, J., Palarea, R.E., Cohen, J., & Rohling, M.L. ( 2000). Breaking up is hard to do: Unwanted pursuit behaviors following the dissolution of a romantic relationship. Violence and Victims, 15, 73-90.
31.
Lee, L. ( 1984). Sequences in separation: A framework for investigating endings of the personal (romantic) relationship. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 1, 49-71.
32.
Levinger, G. ( 1979). A social exchange view on the dissolution of pair relationships . In R. L. Burgess & T. L. Huston (Eds.), Social exchange in developing relationships (pp. 169-193). New York: Academic Press.
33.
Lindlof, T.R., & Taylor, B.C. ( 2002). Qualitative communication research methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
34.
Miller, G.R., & Parks, M.R. ( 1982). Communication in dissolving relationships. In S. Duck (Ed.), Personal Relationships: Dissolving personal relationships (Vol. 4; pp. 127-154). New York: Academic Press.
35.
Orbuch, T.L. ( 1997). People’s accounts count: The sociology of accounts . Annual Review of Sociology, 23, 455-478.
36.
Orbuch, T.L., Veroff, J., & Holmberg, D. ( 1993). Becoming a married couple: The emergence of meaning in the first years of marriage. Journal of Marriage and the Family , 55, 815-826.
37.
Patterson, B., & O’Hair, D. (1992). Relational reconciliation: Toward a more comprehensive model of relational development. Communication Research Reports, 9, 119-129.
38.
Rollie, S.S., & Duck, S. ( 2006). Divorce and dissolution of romantic relationships: Stage models and their limitations. In M.A. Fine & J. H. Harvey (Eds.), Handbook of divorce and relationship dissolution (pp. 223-240). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
39.
Rusbult, C.E., Matrz, J.M., & Agnew, C.R. ( 1998). The Investment Model Scale: Measuring commitment level, satisfaction level, quality of alternatives, and investment size. Personal Relationships, 5, 57-91.
40.
Schnieder, C.S., & Kenny, D.A. ( 2000). Cross-sex friends who were once romantic partners: Are they platonic friends now? Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 17, 451-466.
41.
Simpson, J.A. ( 1987). The dissolution of romantic relationships: Factors involved in relational stability and emotional distress. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 53, 683-692.
42.
Sorenson, K.A., Russell, S.M., Harkness, D.J., & Harvey, J.H. ( 1993). Account making, confiding, and coping with the ending of a close relationship. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality , 8, 73-86.
43.
Sprecher, S. ( 1994). Two sides to the breakup of dating relationships. Personal Relationships, 1, 199-222.
44.
Sprecher, S. ( 1999). "I love you more today than yesterday": Romantic partners’ perceptions of change in love and related affect over time. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 76, 46-53.
45.
Sprecher, S. ( 2001). Equity and social exchange in dating couples: Associations with satisfaction, commitment, and stability. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 63, 599-613.
46.
Sprecher, S., Felmlee, D., Metts, S., Fehr, B., & Vanni, D. ( 1998). Factors associated with distress following the breakup of a close relationship. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships , 15, 791-809.
47.
Strauss, A.L. ( 1987). Qualitative analysis for social scientists. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
48.
Strauss, A.L., & Corbin, J. ( 1990). Basics of qualitative research. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
49.
Surra, C.A., & Bohman, T. ( 1991). The development of close relationships: A cognitive perspective . In G. J. O. Fletcher & F. D. Fincham (Eds.), Cognition in close relationships . Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum .
50.
Surra, C.A., & Gray, C.E. ( 2000). A typology of processes of commitment to marriage: Why do partners commit to problematic relationships? In L. J. Waite, C. Backrach, M. Hindin, E. Thomson, & A. Thornton (Eds.), The ties that bind: Perspectives on marriage and cohabitation (pp. 253-280). New York: Aldine de Gruyter.
51.
Surra, C.A., Gray, C.R., Boettcher, T.M.J., Cottle, N.R., & West, A.R. ( 2006). From courtship to universal properties: Research on dating and mate selection, 1950 to 2003. In A. L. Vangelisti & D. Perlman (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of personal relationships (pp. 113-130). Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press.
52.
Surra, C.A., Gray, C.R., Cottle, N., & Boettcher, T.M.J. (2004). Research on mate selection and premarital relationships: What do we really know? In A. L. Vangelisti (Ed.), Handbook of family communication (pp. 53-82). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
53.
Surra, C.A., Hughes, D.K., & Jacquet, S.E. ( 1999). The development of commitment to marriage: A phenomenological approach. In J. M. Adams & W. H. Jones (Eds.), Handbook of interpersonal commitment and relationship stability (pp. 125-148). New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers.
54.
Surra, C.A., & Longstreth, M. (1990). Similarities in outcomes, interdependence, and conflict in dating relationships. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 59, 501-516.
55.
Thibaut, J.W., & Kelley, H.H. ( 1959). The social psychology of groups. New York: Wiley.
56.
Weber, A.L., Harvey, J.H., & Orbuch, T.L. ( 1992).What went wrong: Communicating accounts of relationship conflict. In McLaughlin, Cody, & Read (Eds.), Explaining one’s self to others: Reason-giving in a social context (pp. 261-280). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
57.
Weigel, D., & Murray, C. ( 2000). The paradox of stability and change in relationships: What does chaos theory offer for the study of romantic relationships? Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 17, 425-449.
58.
Weiss, R.L. ( 1975). Marital separation. New York: The Free Press.
