A study conducted by researchers at Oakland University in the United States and published in the Personality and Individual Differences journal shows that people who want to remain friends with their ex may have common traits with people who suffer from psychopathy. To reach this conclusion, they surveyed 861 people to enable them to discover their narcissistic or psychopathic traits based on their relationship status.
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The results showed that those who had "dark traits", similar to those of psychopaths, remained in contact with old conquests. "Individuals who have a high score when measuring the subject's dark personality tend to choose friends for strategic reasons, so it is likely that these traits are associated with a tendency to rate friendships based on utilitarian and instrumental reasons, in order to maintain some access to sexual relations," the researchers published. "This study suggests that post-relationship friendships work similarly both ways, as they allow for the continued exchange of desired resources."
The main reasons for the difficulty of breaking up with an ex are mainly sex, the exchange of good practices (sex, love, money, status), convenience and trust.
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