“Could ‘Rebecca Syndrome’ Be the Hidden Toxicity Destroying Your Relationships?”
Studies revealed that the syndrome is ingrained in childhood trauma, as people try to recreate the conditions within which they first experienced affection from caregivers
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A 2022 study by the University of Bern, Switzerland, explored how early childhood experiences shape jealousy patterns in adult relationships.
The researchers found that individuals who experienced emotional neglect or inconsistent affection from caregivers were more likely to exhibit heightened levels of romantic jealousy later in life.
Unreliable caregiving was associated with the development of feelings of inevitable abandonment, leading those affected to not only expect this outcome but strive to create it.
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The paper explained how anxious behaviors such as Rebecca Syndrome are ultimately an effort to recreate the conditions within which the person first experienced affection as a child. If a person feels that love is conditional, scarce, or associated with negative emotions such as fear, then they will look for relationships that support this belief.
Conversely, the study explained how those with secure attachments tended to display lower levels of jealousy, allow themselves higher levels of trust in their partners, and reduce the emotional impact of perceived threats like exes.
People with higher levels of neuroticism are more likely to experience the Rebecca Syndrome. Conversely, those with higher levels of agreeableness are more resistant to feelings of jealousy
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The study also established a link between the Big Five personality traits in modern psychology and the degrees to which a person is likely to experience jealousy.
