Romantic rejections are a hurtful yet common occurrence in online dating. While research in this area is growing, there is a need for a comprehensive and comparative overview to understand these rejection experiences better. This article presents the results of two cross-sectional survey studies that aimed to create a more comprehensive overview of multiple facets of rejections in online dating, particularly the types of rejections used, the (provided) reasons for rejecting, and the painfulness of being rejected. Results of Study 1 (n = 177) show that ghosting was the most often experienced rejection type, even when a considerable number of messages was exchanged before the rejection. Unmatching/blocking and rejections with an explanation occurred less but equally often. Moreover, individuals who experienced rejections with an explanation reported the highest painfulness rates, which raised important questions about the reasons behind such explicit rejections. Study 2 further unpacked the provided rejection reasons, from the rejecter and the rejectee perspective. Five categories were identified among the reasons, such as (lack of) attraction and reasons related to relationship investment. Several interesting discrepancies that emerged between reasons provided by rejecters versus rejectees are discussed. Our work underlines the multifaceted nature of rejection experiences in online dating and sets directions for future research that further explores the relationships between rejection types, reasons, and painfulness in detail.

中文翻译：

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在线约会中拒绝的多个方面：探索类型、原因和影响。


在网上约会中，浪漫的拒绝是一种伤害性但常见的现象。尽管这一领域的研究不断发展，但仍需要进行全面和比较的概述，以更好地了解这些拒绝经历。本文介绍了两项横断面调查研究的结果，旨在对在线约会中拒绝的多个方面进行更全面的概述，特别是所使用的拒绝类型、拒绝的（提供的）原因以及被拒绝的痛苦。研究 1 (n = 177) 的结果表明，重影是最常经历的拒绝类型，即使在拒绝之前交换了相当多的消息也是如此。不匹配/阻止和拒绝并提供解释的情况发生较少，但同样频繁。此外，经历过有解释的拒绝的人报告的痛苦率最高，这引发了关于这种明确拒绝背后原因的重要问题。研究 2 从拒绝者和被拒绝者的角度进一步解析了所提供的拒绝原因。原因分为五类，例如（缺乏）吸引力以及与关系投资相关的原因。讨论了拒绝者和被拒绝者提供的原因之间出现的一些有趣的差异。我们的工作强调了在线约会中拒绝经历的多方面性质，并为未来的研究指明了方向，进一步详细探讨拒绝类型、原因和痛苦之间的关系。