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There's a terrible new twist on 'ghosting' — the cruel way of dumping someone by cutting off all contact without explanation

"Ghosting" is a cruel method of breaking up with someone that involves simply cutting off all contact without any explanation, and it is happening to tons of people (millennials, in particular).

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A new survey of 800 single US millennials, conducted by the dating service Plenty of Fish, found that 80% had been "ghosted."

But an even more insidious form of ghosting has begun to pop up, one that manages to constantly remind those it affects that they have been dumped.

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Demi Moore and Patrick Swayze in one of the most memorable scenes from "Ghost." Paramount Pictures

Let's call it "haunting."

Haunting is when, though you have cut off all direct contact with someone, you still interact indirectly with the person on social media. This means you don't send them messages, but you still "like" the person's Facebook or Instagram posts or, commonly, view his or her stories on Snapchat.

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Most of the people I spoke with said Snapchat had become ground zero for this type of ghosting. Why? Because you can see everyone who has viewed your stories or snaps, whereas you have to actively like a post on Facebook for someone to know you were looking. And while liking the Facebook post of someone you ghosted has to feel a bit cheeky, viewing the person's Snapchat story might not seem like such a big deal.

But it hurts. The consensus among the people I talked to was that this method of ghosting definitely stung more — but depending on the amount of emotional distance they had, it could also be amusing.

snapchat story
On Snapchat, you can see who has viewed your story. Snapchat

"Oh, you are alive," one person joked.

Some have argued that one of the horrible parts of ghosting is that it sends mixed signals. "If you go on more than three dates, you've indicated you're interested," Anna Sale, the managing editor and host of a WNYC podcast called Death, Sex & Money, told The New York Times. "To disappear after that is confusing."

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What's even more confusing? Having that person retweet your witty commentary as if everything is fine and dandy.

Jezebel has argued that "generally a person worthy of ghosting has really done something really, truly terrible." Haunting seems to undercut that. If someone has done something unforgivably bad, it doesn't really make sense that you are still engaging with the person on social media.

But the explanation might be a simple one.

One "haunter" acknowledged that he did it to leave things open for a future rendezvous. He had begun to casually "like" things on social media a few months after ghosting his former date. So how did it go?

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He hadn't had the courage to initiate direct contact yet.

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