2010/11/18 by Benjamin Le, Miriam S. Korn, Erin E. Crockett +1 · 1 voice · 1 citation
Psychology · #Attachment and Relationship Dynamics #Behavioral Health and Interventions #Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior
paper · doi:10.1177/0265407510384898
openalex publication_date 2010/11/18 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/05/21
Working from the perspective of interdependence theory and models of relationship maintenance, this study examined the functional role of missing a romantic partner during a brief geographic separation. Eighty-eight undergraduate students involved in romantic relationships completed a measure of commitment prior to separation, and measures of missing a romantic partner, relationship maintenance, and physical infidelity during their winter break. Commitment was associated with participants’ self-reports of missing their romantic partners. Further, commitment predicted participants’ use of relationship maintenance strategies (i.e., positivity, openness, and assurances) and physical infidelity during the separation. These associations were mediated by how much participants missed their romantic partners. Findings are discussed in terms of interdependence theory and the growing literature on geographic distance between relationship partners.