title: Facing a breakup: Electromyographic responses moderate self-concept recovery following a romantic separation.
abstract: Romantic breakups arouse fundamental questions about the self:Who am I without my partner?This study examined self-concept reorganization and psychological well-being over an 8-week period in the months following a breakup. Multilevel analyses revealed that poorer self-concept recovery preceded poorer well-being and was associated with love for an ex-partner, suggesting that failure to redefine the self contributes to post-breakup distress. Psychophysiological data revealed that greater activity in the corrugator supercilia facial muscle while thinking about an ex-partner predicted poorer self-concept recovery and strengthened the negative association between love for an ex-partner and self-concept recovery. Thus, the interaction between self-report and psychophysiological data provided information about the importance of self-concept recovery to post-breakup adjustment not tapped by either method alone.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Arizona; Robert M. Portley, University of Arizona College of Medicine.
authors.forename: Ashley E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Mason
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Arizona; Robert M. Portley, University of Arizona College of Medicine.
authors.forename: Rita W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Law
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Arizona; Robert M. Portley, University of Arizona College of Medicine.
authors.forename: Amanda E B
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Bryan
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Arizona; Robert M. Portley, University of Arizona College of Medicine.
authors.forename: Robert M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Portley
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Arizona; Robert M. Portley, University of Arizona College of Medicine.
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Sbarra