Daters' reactions to geographic separation : do biological sex and interderpence type predict missing and coping?

How daters react to being separated from their romantic partners was investigated. Specifically, biological sex and a correlate of biological sex, interdependence type, were tested as predictors of the extent to which individuals (a) miss their partners and (b) use specific strategies in an attempt to cope with the separation. Three online assessments of missing and coping were administered to students (N=124) over winter break while they were separated from their dating partners. Although biological sex was limited in its ability to predict missing and coping, interdependence type consistently predicted how individuals experienced and coped with geographic separation.