Subtle shifts in speech can signal the end of a relationship

+ a shootout between Black Panthers and law enforcement 50 years ago US Edition - Today's top story: Evidence of an impending breakup may exist in everyday conversation – months before either partner realizes their relationship is tanking [View in browser]( US Edition | 9 February 2021 [The Conversation]( Academic rigor, journalistic flair When doubts about a relationship start to creep in, people don’t just blurt them out. They might not want to worry their partner and probably think they can hide their feelings pretty easily. But it turns out that evidence of an impending breakup may exist in small words used in everyday speech. It can even happen months before either partner realizes their relationship is tanking. In a new study, a team of psycholinguistic researchers analyzed the Reddit posts of over 6,000 people who had gone through a breakup. They were able to show how their language subtly changed in the months leading up to a breakup – [well before they’d made a conscious decision to end things.]( Also today: - [Nonapology apologies in modern political life]( - [Not every wintery blast is the polar vortex]( - [Hints about how seals navigate and forage under the ice]( Nick Lehr Arts + Culture Editor Signs of a fraying relationship can appear in subtle ways. Betsie Van der Meer via Getty Images [Evidence of an impending breakup may exist in everyday conversation – months before either partner realizes their relationship is tanking]( Sarah Seraj, The University of Texas at Austin College of Liberal Arts; James W. Pennebaker, The University of Texas at Austin College of Liberal Arts; Kate G. Blackburn, The University of Texas at Austin College of Liberal Arts Psycholinguistic researchers analyzed more than 1 million Reddit posts a year before and a year after users posted about their breakup. 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