184 Friendship and Conflict
variables continue to be predictors of dyadic contact following romantic dissolution
(Lannutti & Cameron, 2002).
Villella (2010) expanded on Lannutti and Cameron’s (2002) research and found
that heterosexuals who were not currently in a romantic relationship were more
likely to communicate with their ex- partners at least once a month, while those
who were in a current romantic relationship were more likely to communicate with
their ex- partners less than once a month or not at all. Further, for those who were
not involved in a new romantic relationship, more communication was initiated by
both parties and fewer respondents reported that they did not communicate with
their ex- partners. Contrary to their hypotheses, breakup initiators did not attempt
to communicate with their ex- partners less frequently than noninitiators.
Interdependence in Postdissolution Friendships
Dependence level is “the degree to which each of two interacting individuals needs
their relationship, or the extent to which each individual’s personal well- being rests
on involvement in the relationship” (Agnew, Van Lange, Rusbult, & Langston,
1998, p. 940). The level of interdependence should change after a relationship is
terminated, as ex- partners go through a process of redefining the self from a “we”
to an “I” (Vaughan, 1986). Former partners who become friends, however, are
thought to never reach the final uncoupling stage, because while their identities are
no longer tied to the relationship, they are still dependent on one another (Foley &
Fraser, 1998).
Dependency in any relationship is affected by the rewards and costs provided by
the partner and by possible alternative partners (Agnew et al., 1998). A romantic
relationship is often terminated when the perceived costs outweigh the rewards or
if one or more partners believe they will have better outcomes with alternative rela-
tionships. When former partners remain friends, however, there must still be a pos-
sible favorable outcome of the cost- reward ratio. Busboom et al. (2002) found that
the resources partners retained from their romantic relationship carry over to their
postrelationship friendships. Partners who perceived a higher level of resources as
opposed to costs also reported having a higher quality of friendship and higher lev-
els of satisfaction with their former partner and new friendship. The more resources
ex- partners perceive, the more likely they are to have a friendship after the romantic
relationship has ended.
The investment model (Rusbult, 1980) builds off of interdependence theory by
suggesting that dependency is additionally affected by satisfaction, investment, and
possible alternatives in a relationship. These three components produce the expe-
rience of commitment, which then leads to the shared identity of “us” or “we” as
opposed to the singular “I” or “me” (Agnew et al., 1998; Arriaga, Agnew, & Rusbult,
1997). The strength of the association between the investment model variables and
interdependence in romantic relationships is strong and relatively well established.