Ghosting, or ending a relationship by cutting contact without an explanation, has become a hot topic when it comes to dating. Many people partake in this practice in their love lives, but many others find it hurtful and rude. A new study published in Acta Psychologica reveals that people high in the Dark Triad personality traits (psychopathy, Machiavellianism, and narcissism).
The way people behave in their romantic relationships is directly connected to their personality traits. Previous research has shown links between the Dark Triad traits and promiscuous behaviors, cheating, and increased number of sexual partners. Though there is research on how people who are high in Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy behave in romantic relationships, there is little understanding of how these personality traits relate to ending relationships, and this study sought to bridge this gap.
Researcher Peter K. Jonason and colleagues recruited 341 American adults to serve as their sample. Participants were primarily white, female, and undergraduate students, but ranged in ages from 18 to 72 years old. All participants completed a measure assessing Dark Triad personality traits and answered questions about ghosting to assess their attitudes and if they have ever participated in ghosting.
Results showed that participants found it more acceptable to ghost in short-term romantic situations as opposed to long-term relationships. People who reported that they had ghosted someone in the past scored higher on psychopathy and Machiavellianism, but not narcissism, than people who reported they had never ghosted anyone. People high in Dark Triad traits were more likely to find ghosting acceptable, but only in the context of short-term relationships.
This study took steps into understanding how Dark Triad traits may relate to terminating romantic relationships, but it has several limitations. Firstly, the sample was predominantly women, young adults, and white participants, which could limit generalizability. Another limitation is that the researchers asked only about short and long-term relationships. Future research could expand on this and explore nuances of different types of relationships, as that could greatly affect attitudes towards ghosting.
“Despite these limitations, we have provided new information about how the Dark Triad traits function in an understudied phase of relationships and provided new information about one type of relationship termination. While more work is warranted, we can conclude that ghosting is considered acceptable by people, men in particular, high in the Dark Triad traits when attempting to extract themselves from low investment relationships,” the researchers concluded.
“This may, therefore, reveal that some cases of ghosting, and the related ‘trauma’ associated with it, might simply be a matter of differences in partner’s perspectives on the relationship. If one party believes the relationship is serious (someone likely to be lower on the Dark Triad traits) and the other person does not (someone likely to be higher on the Dark Triad traits), the latter person may not feel obligated to grant the former person the courtesy of a direct, compassionate break-up which may undermine the happiness of the former person.”
The study, “Leaving without a word: Ghosting and the Dark Triad traits“, Peter K. Jonason, Izabela Kaźmierczak, Ana Catarina Campos, and Mark D. Davis.
