Research finds there’s a major difference in how men and women deal with breakups

Breaking up with someone is rarely easy and anyone who's ever been through one will know how emotional it can be.

There is a perception that women tend to get more upset while men bottle up their feelings and pretend everything is fine. A recent study conducted by researchers at Binghamton University and University College London has revealed that on a long-term basis, women handle break-ups better than men. Over 5,700 men and women in 96 countries were asked how they dealt with break-ups and the results were very interesting. Researchers found that although women are upset in the initial stages, men tend to suffer more as time goes on. The findings were published in the Evolutionary Behavioral Sciences Journal with lead researcher Craig Morris giving his theory on the findings.

"Put simply, women are evolved to invest far more in a relationship than a man. A brief romantic encounter could lead to nine months of pregnancy…while the man may have ‘left the scene’ literally minutes after the encounter, with no further biological investment". "It is this ‘risk' that has made women choosier about selecting a high-quality mate. Hence, the loss of a relationship with a high-quality mate ‘hurts’ more for a woman".

He also said that while men may not hurt as much at first, it will "sink in" later. Morris continued:

"The man will likely feel the loss deeply and for a very long period of time as it ‘sinks in’ that he must ‘start competing’ all over again to replace what he has lost".

Of course, everyone deals differently with the end of a relationship but this is an interesting study nonetheless.