How will your relationship be remembered?: virtual relational curation following a breakup

Abstract

ABSTRACT The Relationship Dissolution Model (RDM) was used to analyze what and why virtual possessions people retain or delete after a romantic relationship breakup. Participants (N = 406) completed online open-ended survey questions to understand their decision-making process for retaining or deleting relationship possessions. Upon completing an emergent thematic analysis, findings showed that people retained and deleted virtual possessions for a variety of reasons, including documenting memory, documenting emotion, managing the past – moving on, and managing the present – emotional regulation. Based on these findings, the RDM was adapted to include a relationship curation process, which describes the management of relationship memories tied to virtual possessions. The implications offer a foundation for expanding on memory management processes.