Facebook Trying To Ease Breakup Woes By Tweaking ‘Relationship Status’ — No Need To Unfriend Or Block Your Ex


Facebook appears to be tweaking “Relationship Status” and its associated settings to ease breakup woes. The social media platform doesn’t want individuals to unfriend or block each other just because they are no longer romantically involved.

Facebook has been testing a new feature that gets activated when you change your “Relationship Status.” The modification, which works in both ways, not just allows you to reveal a little less to your ex, but offers the same privilege to him or her, reported the company through a blog post. Essentially, the feature is intended to restrict how much the exes can see and ensure that the parties involved continue to remain friends. No more blocking or unfriending a person, just because you have broken up with them, intends the company.

How does the tweak work? The tools appear to be in testing phase and are restricted to the mobile platform of Facebook and available only to users in America for the time being. The set of tools, collectively labeled as “take a break,” may be rolled out to other users depending on the feedback Facebook receives. Those interested in experimenting can access the tools by heading to the “Help Center.” The social media company did not mention if the changes, effected by the tools, are reversible.

With the new set of tools activated, when you change your relationship status, you will have the option to limit the content that will be visible to your former partner. Simply put, you may not want your status updates, pictures, and videos to be seen by your exes, or in the reverse order, you may not want to see your former partner’s content, reported Mashable. Apart from scaled down visibility, Facebook will ensure your former partner’s name doesn’t appear in suggested people to message or tag.

Facebook Trying To Ease Breakup Woes By Tweaking 'Relationship Status'
[Image via Facebook]
Taking it a notch further, Facebook will also give the option of automatically untagging or limiting the visibility of posts and photos with an ex. Those who wish to have additional control, Facebook will allow manual editing by throwing up each post that contains both of you, and for those who simply wish to remove all trace, Facebook will remove all tags in one step, saving you the agony of revisiting happier times, wondering what went wrong.

Users worried about still attached or obsessed exes can take solace, because the tools will limit the information an ex sees about their former partners, reported the Guardian. Users who have gone through a breakup can choose to hide their posts from their ex. The former partner will only be able to see those posts that you share publicly, with mutual friends, or those that you have tagged them in.

Facebook Trying To Ease Breakup Woes By Tweaking 'Relationship Status'
[Image via Facebook]
Facebook already offers multiple levels of restrictions regarding the content that users upload. Using the easily accessible viewing permissions, users can customize who exactly can view personal posts and photos. However, these tools, meant specifically for couples who have fallen out of love, are meant to offer a discreet way of restricting viewership, indicated Facebook product manager Kelly Winters.

“Users often ask what options are available when they end a relationship beyond unfriending or blocking an ex. The tool was designed to add more flexibility to this process.

“The tools are part of our ongoing effort to develop resources for people who may be going through difficult moments in their lives. We hope these tools will help people end relationships on Facebook with greater ease, comfort and sense of control.”

Since the advent of social media platforms like Facebook, relationships have become even more complicated. Moreover, ending a relationship has become even more complex since your activities are now visible to everyone, including your former partner. Will the “take a break” tools that get activated only after you change your relationship status truly help in a clean and trouble-free separation?

[Photo by Manjunath Kiran/Getty Images]

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