Abstract Two studies were conducted to identify variables associated with hypothetical infidelity forgiveness and promote forgiveness by manipulating implicit theories of relationships (ITRs; destiny/growth beliefs). Study 1 assessed the relationship between the type of behaviour, sex of the forgiver, ITRs and infidelity forgiveness. Study 2 investigated the causal relationship between ITRs and infidelity forgiveness (including attachment insecurity as a moderator). Results revealed that male participants forgave a partner's infidelity to a greater extent than female participants and that solitary behaviours were rated as most forgivable, followed by emotional/affectionate and technology/online behaviours, and sexual/explicit behaviours as least forgivable. Male participants (not female participants) induced to endorse growth beliefs forgave a partner's emotional/affectionate and solitary infidelity to a greater extent than those induced to endorse destiny beliefs; attachment insecurity moderated this relationship. These results have important implications for researchers and practitioners working with couples in distress.

Abstract Seeking to understand how emerging adult couples frame unmet needs viewed as a threat to their relationship, we examined narratives in which both partners (12 couples) or only one partner (37 couples) expressed break-up anxiety (BUA). The unmet need of Autonomy was more common in partners with BUA whereas Affiliation was more common in those without it. Overlap in narrating the same unmet needs related to BUA was common when both partners expressed BUA, modest when only the female and low when only the male partner expressed BUA. Female partners were more likely to mention BUA and intimacy problems related to BUA than male partners. Couple interventions that target how to disclose and process BUA may help partners develop more effective intimacy skills and, when need be, skills to end relationships in more adaptive ways.

Abstract This study investigated the role of perception of the partner's investment (PPI) as a mediator of the relation between attachment and relationship satisfaction. The participants in the study were 1088 Brazilians who were involved in a committed monogamous romantic relationship. Relations between study variables were tested using structural equations. The results showed that PPI fully mediated the relation between attachment-related anxiety and avoidance and relationship satisfaction. Attachment factors that were mediated by PPI explained 80.7% of the variance of relationship satisfaction. The results revealed that higher levels of attachment-related avoidance and anxiety were associated with a lower PPI and consequently lower relationship satisfaction. Therapeutic interventions for couples may reduce perceptual bias, mainly when attachment levels of the dyad are known.

Abstract Intimate kissing is often viewed as a preliminary or ancillary behaviour in studies exploring sexual interactions. There is a lack of research that focuses on differentiating the types of intimate kisses, including the contexts in which they occur, and desirable and undesirable features. The current study was designed to assess memories of first, best, forbidden and worst kisses. Participants were 691 U.S. adults (mean age 32.27 years; 55% identified as male) who completed an online survey addressing kissing attitudes and experiences using both structured and open-ended survey tools. Four themes emerged through content analysis: physical components, connection to the partner, context, and emotions evoked; and these are discussed for all four types of kissing memories. Findings are discussed in terms of embodiment that intimate kisses capture, their role as a metric of one's attraction to a partner, and the means by which kissing experiences might solidify a sense of oneself as a sexual person.

Abstract This study examined the mediating role of romantic perfectionism in the associations linking romantic attachment insecurity and self-perceived dyadic coping in a community sample of 170 mixed-sex couples. Path analyses, based on the actor-partner interdependence model, revealed that other-oriented perfectionism in men and women mediated the link between their own attachment-related avoidance and dyadic coping. Other-oriented perfectionism in women mediated the link between their own attachment-related anxiety and dyadic coping. Findings contribute to advancing knowledge about the intrapersonal and interpersonal mechanisms underlying coping processes in couples. Results also inform clinical interventions targeting attachment insecurities and perfectionism in the context of romantic relationships.

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Unwanted pursuit behaviours (UPBs) comprise repeated and unwanted efforts to establish intimate contact in the form of harassing, tracking, and monitoring. These are common among young adults following the breakup of a romantic relationship, typically by the rejected partner. The relational goal pursuit theory (RGPT) proposes that UPB users overestimate the importance of a relationship to higher-order goals. This study assessed how well a new coping-based approach and the RGPT model predicted UPB frequency and scope. Two hundred participants (50% female; aged 19–24) completed an anonymous online survey. Ruminating was linked to both greater frequency and scope of UPB use. Higher levels of emotion-focused coping and perceived self-efficacy to re-establish intimacy were linked to the use of a wider scope of unwanted pursuit behaviours. Insights gained from UPB users are necessary for understanding mechanisms associated with the turbulent and distressing aftermath of a romantic breakup.

Abstract Existing research on phubbing has focused mainly on one relationship group (i.e., partner phubbing). How does phubbing differ across different relationship groups (i.e., family vss people at work)? How does phubbing differ within the same relationship group (i.e., in the case of family relations: parents vs. children)? In which situations (i.e., in bed or at the dinner table) are people more likely to phub others? An online survey of 387 participants, predominantly Australians, revealed that participants were more likely to phub family, friends and strangers than people at work, and they were more likely to phub family and friends than strangers. With regard to family relations, participants were more likely to phub parents, partners and children than grandparents. They were more likely to phub partners and children than parents. The reason certain people are phubbed more frequently than others and in specific situations more than others is due to which social norms matter the most: injunctive norms or smartphone-related internalised norms. Considering that phubbing impacts those with whom the phubber has a closer relationship and those with whom the phubber has a distant relationship, comparing how phubbing differs across different relationship groups contributes to understanding the impact of phubbing on social relationships.

Abstract Interest in the relationship between adult attachment and mindfulness has mushroomed over the past decade. Yet the associations between adult attachment and mindfulness related to mental health is less understood. This article provides a systematic research synthesis to elucidate the relationship between adult attachment, mindfulness, and mental health. Findings from 10 empirical articles identified that anxious and avoidant attachment and mindfulness together related to depression, anxiety, psychological functioning, and cortisol response. The effects of adult attachment and mindfulness on mental health is an exciting area for research and practice that can be advanced by the inclusion of key romantic relationship processes and partners within longitudinal or experimental study designs.

Potential alternative partners can threaten the stability of established relationships, yet a romantic or sexual attraction to someone with whom you are not currently involved (i.e., a ‘crush’) appears common for those in relationships (Mullinax, Barnhart, Mark, & Herbenick, 2016). This study assessed prevalence of such crushes, individual and relationship predictors, and links to infidelity. Adults (N = 247, aged 25–45, 43.3% women) in romantic relationships completed surveys assessing individual characteristics (attention to alternatives, sociosexual orientation, attachment avoidance), relationship quality (satisfaction, commitment, intimacy), and infidelity. The degree of attention to alternatives predicted whether one had a crush on another while in a romantic relationship. Crushes were fairly common and seemed to have had few negative implications for those in established relationships. These findings will be of use to therapists addressing couples’ attraction to others.