Caution: Study finds your friendly ex could be a psychopath

Researchers found that your ex-partner's hidden intentions might be toxic

If you're going through a rough patch post-breakup and your ex insists on being friends, stay clear of them!

Researchers from Oakland University found that your ex-partner is likely to have an ulterior motive for wanting to stay friends after a breakup.

The study reveals, some people with "dark triad" personality traits like narcissism and psychopathy keep their exes around for strategic, self serving reasons.

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Former partners tend to use you to satiate their own voids which are often neurotic in nature.

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The researchers asked more than 300 participants to name reasons why they would want to be friends with an ex, and results revealed that their hidden intentions might be toxic.

The findings suggest that a post-breakup friendship allowed the partners to exchange desirable resources such as love, status, information and intimacy after the dissolution, reports Huffington Post. The crux of the research is that not all ex-partners wish you the best, especially the ones with dark personality traits.

Studies also show that exes are less helpful, less emotionally supportive and less trusting. Juliana Breines, a postdoctoral fellow writes in her Psychology Today blog: "This is especially true, not surprisingly, for former partners who were dissatisfied with the romantic relationship, and in cases when the breakup was not mutual.”

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That isn’t to say that all exes are terrible people only using you for their pleasure. It is possible to have a cordial relationship with a former partner.

The basic outcome here is, if it doesn’t feel like a real friendship to you, or if things ended on a bitter note, there could be a vicious reason for them to get back in touch.

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You wouldn't want to be someone's apparatus for personal gains now, would you?