Mojtaba Hafezi, Masoud Janbozorgi, Masoud Azarbayejani,
Volume 25, Issue 97 (5-2026)
Abstract
Ai,m: The present study aimed to explore the lived experience of factors sustaining distress following romantic breakup among women and men who had experienced a romantic breakup within the cultural context of Iran. ▌Methods: This study was conducted using a qualitative approach based on Bengtsson’s (2016) qualitative content analysis method. The study population consisted of all men and women residing in the city of Qom who had experienced a romantic breakup. Using purposive sampling with maximum variation and continuing sampling until data saturation was achieved, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 15 participants (10 women and 5 men). Data analysis was carried out through four stages: decontextualization, recontextualization, categorization, and compilation. To ensure the trustworthiness of the findings, the four criteria of credibility, confirmability, transferability, and dependability were evaluated according to the standards proposed by Lincoln and Guba. To strengthen dependability, 10 experts reviewed the findings, and the Content Validity Index (CVI) was calculated to confirm the adequacy of the extracted categories. ▌Results: The findings indicated that the factors sustaining distress following romantic breakup comprised 14 subcategories, 2 categories, and 1 overarching theme. These factors included sustaining reactions (failure to terminate contact, insistence on meeting again, pursuing the former romantic partner, frequent exposure to reminder cues, social withdrawal and inactivity, self-harming behaviors, and low social support) and sustaining cognitions (conflicting spiritual cognitions, conflicting personal cognitions, rumination about causal explanations, self-blame, hope for the relationship’s restoration, suppression of thoughts and emotions, and thoughts of meaninglessness and emptiness). ▌Conclusion: The findings of this study provide a basis for developing culturally grounded counseling and therapeutic interventions that can be applied in counseling centers and psychological services with the aim of reducing the clinical symptoms associated with romantic breakup.
