Language left behind on social media exposes the emotional and cognitive costs of a romantic breakup
Authors: Sarah Seraj
Kate G Blackburn
James W Pennebaker
Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (2021)
Discipline: Multidisciplinary
Keywords: LIWC; breakups; divorce; language; romantic relationships.
Affiliations: Department of Psychology, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712 ., Department of Psychology, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712.

Abstract:  Using archived social media data, the language signatures of people going through breakups were mapped. Text analyses were conducted on 1,027,541 posts from 6,803 Reddit users who had posted about their breakups. The posts include users' Reddit history in the 2 y surrounding their breakups across the various domains of their life, not just posts pertaining to their relationship. Language markers of an impending breakup were evident 3 mo before the event, peaking on the week of the breakup and returning to baseline 6 mo later. Signs included an increase in I-words, we-words, and cognitive processing words (characteristic of depression, collective focus, and the meaning-making process, respectively) and drops in analytic thinking (indicating more personal and informal language). The patterns held even when people were posting to groups unrelated to breakups and other relationship topics. People who posted about their breakup for longer time periods were less well-adjusted a year after their breakup compared to short-term posters. The language patterns seen for breakups replicated for users going through divorce (n = 5,144; 1,109,867 posts) or other types of upheavals (n = 51,357; 11,081,882 posts). The cognitive underpinnings of emotional upheavals are discussed using language as a lens. 

Retracted: No

PubPeer comments:
 Figure 5B appears to have two figures which overlap, with different magnifications. *** ![file] *** ![file] , 
 There appears to be some overlapping images between Figure 2d and 5b. *** ![file] , 
 An image in Figure 2b appears quite similar to an image in Figure 6H of a later seemingly unrelated publication, Oncogenesis (2018) doi: 10.1038 s41389-018-0088-9. *** ![file] , 
 #2 The images in Figure 2d and 5d also appear quite similar to an image in Figure 9 of a previously published 2011 paper. *** ![file] , 
 Retracted [25 March 2022] . ----------------- The Editor has retracted this article. After publication, concerns were raised about three of the figures. Specifically: - In Figure 5b two panels 1.0 and 2.0 shown at different magnifications appear to overlap - In Figure 2b panel 8d appears to overlap with the Vector panel in Figure 6H of [1] - In Figure 2d the PC panel appears to overlap with panels 1.0 and 2.0 in Figure 5b, and the SFC panel appears to overlap with the 0 panel of Figure 5b - The PC panel in Figure 2d and the 1.0 and 2.0 panels in Figure 5b also appear to overlap with the 100 nM SiTF panel in Figure 9 of [2] The Editor therefore no longer has confidence in the data presented. Xiaocheng Cao, Hui Zou, Jianguo Cao, Yinghong Cui, Shuwen Sun, Kaiqun Ren, Duo Li and Meifeng Quan agree with this retraction. Zhenwei Song has not responded to correspondence from the Editor about this retraction. - [1] Huang YF, Niu WB, Hu R, Wang LJ, Huang ZY, Ni SH, Wang MQ, Yang Y, Huang YS, Feng WJ, Xiao W, Zhu DJ, Xian SX, Lu L. FIBP knockdown attenuates growth and enhances chemotherapy in colorectal cancer via regulating GSK3u03b2-related pathways. Oncogenesis. 2018;7:77. https: doi.org 10.1038 s41389-018-0088-9 - [2] Xu C, Gui Q, Chen W, Wu L, Sun W, Zhang N, Xu Q, Wang J, Fu X. Small interference RNA targeting tissue factor inhibits human lung adenocarcinoma growth in vitro and in vivo. J Exp Clin Cancer Res. 2011;30:63. ,