There are four main reasons, Rebecca Griffith and her colleagues found, why exes feel compelled to maintain a friendship or to suggest doing so: for civility (i.e., I want this breakup to hurt less than it will otherwise), for reasons relating to unresolved romantic desires (I want to see other people but keep you

Can ex girlfriend still be friends?

Being friends with a former partner is something many of us neither want or feel is possible, but with the right communication it can work. These include: civility; unresolved romantic desires; practicality (eg working together, going to school together or sharing mutual friends) and security.