When silence speaks louder than words: Exploring the experiences and attitudes of ghosters

Abstract Ghosting has become commonplace beyond romantic relationships. Therefore, we aimed to broadly understand ghosters' (i.e., people who ghost others) experiences including the process of ghosting, reasons and attributions for feelings behaviors associated with attitudes toward ghosting. Thirty‐four undergraduates (65% Latinx, 15% Asian, 12% Black, 8% Other ethnicity) had ghosted another person were interviewed in‐person about their ghosting attitudes, behaviors, a memorable experience. Inductive thematic analyses informed by grounded theory yielded eight themes: A Clear Cause, Avoidance Confrontation, Short‐term Orientation, Ghostees as Socially Inferior, Ignoring then Blocking, Attempts Ghostee Reach Out, Mixed Evolving Feelings, Recognition Harm. Our findings indicate that psychological consequences ghosters should be further examined.