(PS5-A2) Testing the Indirect Effects of Emotion Regulation on Breakup Potential

Introduction: Breakup potential is an individual’s perceived likelihood of relationship dissolution (Doss et al., 2020). Both individual and relationship-level factors are predictive of instability and dissolution (Cate et al., 2002). However, while relationship factors are frequently considered better predictors of breakup potential (Le et al., 2010), there is limited research on how individual difference factors may impact instability through the pathway of relationship-level variables. The purpose of the present study is to explore the role of an individual’s emotion regulation on their ratings of breakup potential in their current relationship.

Current Study: This study examined the main and interactive effects of negative urgency (the tendency to act rashly in response to negative affect; Whiteside & Lynam, 2001) and cognitive reappraisal (the ability to cognitively restructure an emotion-eliciting situation into non-emotional terms; Gross, 1998), on breakup potential as mediated by trust and communication conflict. Participants included 1,153 couples (N = 2,306 individuals; mean age = 33.4; 73.9% White; 86.5% Non-Hispanic) who were recruited nationally to take part in a randomized controlled trial for an online intervention program. Results indicated that negative urgency significantly predicted communication conflict (men; β = .36, women; β = .24), but was only significantly associated with trust for men (β = -.11). Cognitive reappraisal significantly predicted trust (men; β = .13, women; β = .15), but was only significantly associated with communication conflict for women (β = -.09). The interaction between negative urgency and cognitive reappraisal significantly predicted both communication conflict (β = .08) and trust (β = -.07) for women. Furthermore, communication conflict was significantly positively associated with breakup potential (men; β = .34, women; β = .31), while trust was significantly negatively associated with breakup potential (men; β = -.38, women; β = -.42).

Discussion: Across gender negative urgency emerged as the strongest predictor of communication conflict while cognitive reappraisal emerged as the strongest predictor of trust. This study highlights the importance of considering cognitive and emotional individual difference factors in the understanding of relationship instability and their applicability to intervention efforts. Romantic relationship interventions need to consider individual factors in conjunction with couple-level influences to a) better discern the underlying mechanisms that lead to higher breakup potential and, b) devise solutions that target both levels to solve problems more efficiently.