Who gets custody of the friends? Online narratives of changes in friendship networks following relationship breakdown

Détails

ID Serval
serval:BIB_522A42B48C42
Type
Article: article d'un périodique ou d'un magazine.
Collection
Publications
Institution
Titre
Who gets custody of the friends? Online narratives of changes in friendship networks following relationship breakdown
Périodique
Families, Relationships and Societies
Auteur⸱e⸱s
Aeby Gaëlle, van Hooff Jenny
ISSN
2046-7435
ISSN-L
2046-7443
Statut éditorial
Publié
Date de publication
2018
Peer-reviewed
Oui
Pages
NA
Langue
anglais
Résumé
This article explores online narratives of the loss or change of friendships following an intimate partner relationship breakdown. Drawing on internet forum discussions, we explore individuals’ transitions from coupled to single, and the multiple ways in which this affects their friendship ties. Forum users struggled to reconcile friends’ abandonment or distance with cultural representations of friendship as providing intense emotional support during critical life transitions. Users also reflect on the impact of their recent singlehood on friendships established and maintained while coupled, with relationship breakdown illuminating previously unacknowledged couple privilege. We argue that the loss of friendships exacerbated and became part of the break-up experience, illustrating the embedded nature of relationships (Smart, 2007). Relationship breakdown is perceived as acting as an ‘ordeal’ for friendship, revealing the depth and quality of existing ties, as users reflect on their own neglect of friendships while they were coupled.
Mots-clé
Sociology and Political Science
Création de la notice
05/07/2018 15:09
Dernière modification de la notice
21/08/2019 6:15
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