Do red flags point the way?: early warnings and later conflict in singles' relationships

The goal of the present study was to test for links between experiences of red flags in initial interactions with romantic partners and later styles of relational conflict. Red flags are negative qualities or traits displayed by a potential romantic partner that trigger warnings in singles of possible future negative experiences if a romantic relationship develops. I focused on five red flags (displayed a lack of interest, evidenced narcissistic-like behavior, was too sexual, too possessive, or drank too much) and three conflict styles (mutual constructive style, demand/withdraw style, mutual avoidance style) in the current study. The 155 unmarried male undergraduates and the 504 unmarried female undergraduates were asked to refer back to their most recent dating partner when completing these relationship measures. The red flag measures, therefore, were measured using a retrospective approach. After controlling for whether the singles were still in their relationships and the sex of the participants, regression analyses revealed that recalling that one's partner showed a lack of interest in initial interactions were significantly and positively associated with a demand/withdraw and mutual avoidant conflict style. Results also showed that recalling that one's partner was too possessive in initial interactions was significantly and negatively associated with a mutual constructive conflict style, and positively related to partner demand/I withdraw and mutual avoidant conflict styles. Finally, recalling that their partner drank too much in a first interaction was negatively linked to later reports of engaging in a mutually constructive conflict style. This study provides insight into an area of research that has not been previously studied.