Partner-focused obsessions and self-esteem: An experimental investigation Guy Doron * , Ohad Szepsenwol Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) Herzliya, Israel article info Article history: Received 10 September 2014 Received in revised form 16 May 2015 Accepted 17 May 2015 Available online 23 May 2015 Keywords: OCD ROCD Relationships Self Obsessive-compulsive symptoms Partner-focused symptoms abstract Background: Relationship-related obsessive-compulsive phenomena (ROCD) are encountered frequently in the clinic, and involve severe consequences to personal and relational well-being. One common presentation of ROCD involves disabling preoccupation and doubts focusing on intimate partner's flaws (partner-focused obsessions). It was previously suggested that individuals perceiving their partner's failures or flaws as reflecting on their own self-worth may be more sensitive to intrusive thoughts pertaining to their partner's qualities and characteristics. In the current studies, we assessed the link between partner-focused OC symptoms and self-esteem contingent on partner-value. Methods: In two studies we assessed the impact of experimentally induced partner-focused intrusions on self-esteem. In Study 1, we assessed individuals' self-esteem after one of three primes: (a) intrusion about one's partner comparing unfavorably with others of the same sex (i.e., alternative partners), (b) intrusion about one's partner comparing unfavorably to oneself, (c) and a neutral prime. In study 2, we tried to replicate Study 1 using a pre-post design and also examine whether favorable intrusions of one's partner would have an opposite effect on self-esteem than unfavorable intrusions. Results: Compared with the other groups, participants who were primed with intrusions of their partner being unfavorably compared to others reported lower self-esteem, but only if they had high levels of partner-focused symptoms. Favorable intrusions of partner to others did not have a positive effect on self-esteem among individuals with high levels of partner-focused symptoms. Conclusions: Partner-value self-sensitivity may be one of the perpetuating mechanisms involved in partner-focused OC phenomena. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is a complex and het- erogeneous disorder with a variety of obsessional themes (Clark & Beck, 2010; McKay et al., 2004). Exploring the implications of obsessional themes on etiology, maintenance, and treatment may promote insights of understudied processes of OCD and related disorders (Doron, 2014). Indeed, we have recently witnessed a surge in theory and research pertaining to the role of common and specific factors associated with specific OCD themes, including scrupulosity (Abramowitz & Jacoby, 2014), repugnant obsessions (Moulding, Aardema, & O'Connor, 2014), moral and physical contamination fears (Elliott & Radomsky, 2013) and preoccupation with physical-appearance (Veale, 2004; Wihlem & Neziroglu, 2002). An obsessional theme receiving increasing empirical and theo- retical attention is close interpersonal relationships (Doron, Derby, & Szepsenwol, 2014). This obsessional theme has often been referred to as Relationship Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (ROCD; Doron, Derby et al., 2014; Doron, Derby, Szepsenwol, & Talmor, 2012a, 2012b). ROCD research has focused on two related, but conceptually distinct symptom presentations (Doron, Derby et al., 2014). The first presentation, coined relationship-centered obses- sive compulsive (OC) symptoms, involves obsessive doubts and preoccupation centered on the relationship itself. These symptoms often revolve around the strength of one's feelings towards the partner, the feel of the relationship (does it feel right), or the nature of one's partner's feelings towards oneself (Doron et al., 2012b). The second presentation, coined partner-focused OC symptoms, involves obsessive doubts and preoccupation centered on perceived flaws of the relationship partner (Doron et al., 2012a). These flaws are often physical features (e.g., “his/her nose is too big”), social qualities (e.g., “s/he is not social enough”, “s/he does * Corresponding author. P.O. Box 167, Herzliya, 46150, Israel. E-mail address: gdoron@idc.ac.il (G. Doron). Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jbtep http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbtep.2015.05.007 0005-7916/© 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. J. Behav. Ther. & Exp. Psychiat. 49 (2015) 173e179