Diferencias De Genero En Las Predicciones De Bienestar

American Psychological Association 2009 Convention Presentation

Gender Differences in Predictors of WellBeing Following a Romantic Breakup
ERICA E. JOHNSON, University Of Central Missouri KIM S. STARK-WROBLEWSKI, University Of Central Missouri DAVID S. KREINER, University Of Central Missouri

Topics: 66.6 relationships; 8.5 interaction/communication

The ability to effectively managestress is crucial to well-being, with interpersonal problems being a predominant source of stress among individuals seeking therapy (Deutsch, 1985). In particular, the loss of a romantic relationship has been linked to decreases in self-esteem, self-worth, and well-being (Grieger & Georgiades, 2003) as well as higher levels of anxiety and depression (Kiecolt-Glaser & Newton, 2001). Previous researchsuggests that women and men react differently to romantic breakups, including using different coping strategies (Davis et al., 2003). Davis and colleagues found that women expressed greater ambivalence towards their ex-partners than did men. Women are also more likely than men to blame themselves for the breakup (Strong et al., 2008), and may benefit more from social support following a break-up(Stroebe et al., 2000). Hochschild (1981) found that women tend to use cognitive-emotional strategies and rumination, whereas men use more emotional distraction (e.g., spending more time at work). Women more frequently report feeling sad, scared, and confused following a breakup (Perillux et al, 2008). Perillux and colleagues found that both men and women who received (versus initiated) thebreak-up experienced more negative affect. Recent studies have examined the Five Factor Model (FFM) of personality (Costa & McCrae, 1992) in relation to adjustment following a romantic relationship breakup. The FFM asserts that five broad traits (Neuroticism, Extraversion, Openness, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness) can aptly describe personality. Neuroticism (or its opposite, Emotional Stability),which involves frequently experiencing negative affect and maladaptive responses, has been linked to greater distress following a break-up (Hensley, 2006; Tashiro & Frazier, 2003). Extraversion involves a tendency to experience positive affect. The present study contributes to the literature by investigating the role of FFM traits and use of coping strategies in predicting women and men’ssubjective well-being following a romantic break-up. Method Participants were 85 women and 60 men attending a midsized, Midwestern university, who had been in a committed, romantic relationship ending prior to the study. The sample was primarily Caucasian (80.7%), followed by African Americans (13.8%), Hispanics (2.1%), Asian/Pacific Islanders (2.1%), and other groups (1.4%). Participants completed thefollowing measures: Saucier’s (1994) Big Five Mini-Markers (measuring the FFM ), an open-ended questionnaire regarding the relationship and breakup, Watson and colleagues’ (1998) Positive and Negative Affect Scale (subjective well-being [SWB] immediately following breakup), and Davis and colleagues’ (2003) Measures of Coping Scale (coping strategies used following breakup). We hypothesized that theuse of particular coping strategies, following a breakup, would predict variance in SWB above and beyond that explained by FFM traits. We also anticipated that use of specific coping strategies would differentially predict SWB for women versus men. Results and Conclusion We used multiple regression to predict measures of positive and negative affect (SWB) from scores on measures of emotionalstability, extraversion, coping strategies, and based on who initiated the breakup. We conducted separate regression procedures for women and men. Coping strategy variables were included as predictors if their internal consistency reliabilities were .70 or greater and they displayed significant single-order correlations with SWB scores. For women, coping strategies meeting these criteria were: hostile...