Entering and establishing a long-term relationship is typically a gradual process, as dating partners acquire information about each other over weeks or months. In contrast, existing mate selection paradigms (e.g., lab experiments, speed-dating) typically examine single brief encounters with real or potential mates. In the current research, we used a Choose Your Own Adventure design to examine how potential dealbreakers operate within the context of a broader relationship dynamic. In two studies, a combined total of 1585 participants read a story about a new dating relationship. At each of 17 junctures in the story, participants chose whether to continue dating or end the relationship. Potential dealbreakers were independently manipulated to be present or absent at each juncture, for a total of up to 17 negative pieces of information about the partner. Study 2 was a preregistered replication and extension of Study 1. On average, participants did not reject the hypothetical partner until several potential dealbreakers had been presented (M = 4.20 in Study 1, M = 3.68 in Study 2). Participants' self-reported dealbreakers consistently aligned with their in-story decisions. Even so, participants tended to encounter at least two of their own personal dealbreakers before choosing to reject (Study 2). Together, these studies highlight the sequential, iterative nature of partner evaluations, and illustrate a novel, accessible method for testing models of early relationship development.

进入和建立长期关系通常是一个渐进的过程，因为约会对象会在数周或数月内获取彼此的信息。相比之下，现有的择偶模式（例如，实验室实验、快速约会）通常会检查与真实或潜在配偶的单一短暂相遇。在当前的研究中，我们使用了“选择你自己的冒险”设计来检查潜在的交易破坏者如何在更广泛的关系动态的背景下运作。在两项研究中，共有 1585 名参与者阅读了一个关于新约会关系的故事。在故事的 17 个节点中，参与者选择是继续约会还是结束这段关系。潜在的交易破坏者被独立操纵，在每个关键时刻出现或缺席，总共多达 17 条关于合作伙伴的负面信息。研究 2 是研究 1 的预注册复制和扩展。平均而言，参与者在出现几个潜在的交易破坏者之前不会拒绝假设的合作伙伴（在研究 1 中M  = 4.20，在研究 2 中M  = 3.68）。参与者自我报告的交易破坏者与他们在故事中的决定一致。即便如此，参与者在选择拒绝之前往往会遇到至少两个他们自己的个人交易破坏者（研究 2）。总之，这些研究强调了合作伙伴评估的顺序、迭代性质，并说明了一种新颖的、可访问的测试早期关系发展模型的方法。