Geoff MacDonald

Attachment security (i.e., low levels of attachment anxiety and avoidance) is important for both partnered and long-term single people’s well-being. However, research gaps limit knowledge to what extent attachment processes generalize to single people. Research has often not distinguished global and relationship-specific attachment; most studies of single people were cross-sectional; and little is known about attachment change and its co-development with well-being. The present study examined selection into long-term singlehood, change in relationship-specific attachment, and co-development with life satisfaction. We used longitudinal data spanning 30 months (N = 3,542; 39,492 assessments; 82% women; M_age = 34.54) and compared consistently single, consistently partnered, and intermittently partnered people. Baseline global, romantic, and friend-specific avoidance, but not anxiety, prospectively predicted remaining single. Compared to consistently partnered people, consistently single people showed higher global and romantic attachment insecurity, and both groups decreased mostly in parallel. However, single people increased slightly more adaptively in some of the non-romantic attachment models. Intermittently partnered people were similar in romantic attachment at baseline to single people but became more secure over time. Across most attachment models, people who increased in attachment security also increased in life satisfaction. This co-development was similar between groups, except that decreasing romantic avoidance was less closely tied to increasing life satisfaction among single people. Together, persistent differences in global and romantic attachment may reflect selection into relationship status rather than distinct development. In addition, similar attachment–well-being links across groups indicate that attachment operates in similar ways in both partnered and long-term single people.

Lifespan theories often frame partnership and marriage as central life goals, while largely overlooking those who never marry. The present study examined 11-year trajectories (2009/2010–2020/2021) of never-married German singles across three birth cohorts ( N = 2,930; ages 18–48). Using latent class growth analysis, we modeled trajectories of life satisfaction, singlehood satisfaction, sexual satisfaction, and desire for a partner. Most never-married singles reported consistently high and relatively stable life satisfaction. In contrast, singlehood satisfaction, sexual satisfaction, and partner desire showed greater heterogeneity, with classes differing mainly in baseline levels and remaining stable over time. Trajectories with the highest well-being were more highly educated, extraverted, more likely to be employed full-time, and lower in neuroticism. Interestingly, trajectories with the strongest partner desire showed lower education levels and higher agreeableness. Altogether, while singles report diverse romantic and sexual experiences, singles still report satisfaction with their lives generally.

Self-determination theory provides a useful framework for understanding why singles may or may not desire partnership. In a longitudinal study of single adults ( N = 4,019), we assessed motivations for relational pursuit and coded ∼12,000 qualitative reports of relationship goals into 41 thematic categories. Six months later ( N = 3,176), participants reported their progress on these goals. Intrinsic and identified motivation were associated with goals emphasizing relational quality, including enjoyment and commitment. Introjected motivation, reflecting self-image concerns, was associated with prioritizing relational entry over relational quality. It was also associated with the pursuit of self-affirmation and lower goal progress. Amotivation was associated with not pursuing romantic relationships and greater progress on goals related to remaining single. Taken together, our findings suggest single peoples’ motivations to partner shape the quality of the relationships they seek and how they organize their behaviors within singlehood.

Although research has examined partnered individuals’ expectations about romantic relationships, little is known about singles’ expectations for relationships. Using six waves of longitudinal panel data ( N = 5,113), we explored how singles’ expectations relate to experiences in singlehood and future partnerships. Women expected more intimate and more negative outcomes from relationships than men, whereas men were more likely to expect relationships to enhance their status. At both within- and between-person levels, higher intimacy expectations were associated with lower singlehood satisfaction and higher partner desire; within-person increases in negative expectations were associated with lower satisfaction and partner desire. Individuals with higher intimacy expectations were less likely to remain single and felt more satisfied in future relationships; negative expectations were associated with a greater likelihood of remaining single and lower future relationship satisfaction. Together, our data suggest that singles’ image of partnership is related to satisfaction in singlehood and future romantic relationships.

Individuals not in romantic relationships (i.e., singles) represent an emerging focus in close relationship research. Gender has been recognized as an important demographic variable in understanding singles' experiences, with some existing Western literature suggesting that single women report higher levels of well‐being than single men. However, the cross‐cultural generalizability of these findings remains unclear, such as in Eastern contexts like China. China presents a compelling case for examining these gender differences due to its unique tension between traditional Confucian values that link female worth to marriage and an evolving societal shift toward individualism. As such, the present study recruited 1629 Chinese‐speaking never‐married singles ( M _age = 29.41 years) via Credamo , a nationally representative data platform, and assessed multiple dimensions of well‐being. Results indicated that single women reported higher well‐being than single men, showing greater life satisfaction, relationship status satisfaction, lower desire for a partner, and fear of being single, but no differences in family satisfaction. Further analyses revealed that these gender differences remained largely robust across age, urbanization, and geographical regions. Overall, these data suggest the potential that there are culturally universal patterns in the relation between gender and singles' well‐being, whereby women are happier single than men.

Young adults increasingly abstain from committed romantic relationships. However, psychological theories of singlehood are lacking, and it remains unclear who selects into remaining single throughout emerging adulthood and how consistent singles' well-being is affected over time. Here, we included 17,390 initially never partnered respondents from three panel studies from the United Kingdom and Germany providing 110,261 yearly observations from ages 16 to 29. First, we used survival analysis to predict who remained single. Young adults with lower well-being, male gender, higher education, and living alone or with parents stayed single longer. Second, we compared within-person age trajectories of life satisfaction, loneliness, and depressivity between consistent singles and eventually partnered respondents. Across emerging adulthood, consistent singles experienced comparatively stronger life satisfaction decreases and loneliness increases. Well-being deficits became more pronounced in the later 20s, when depressivity increases also diverged between groups. Evidence for moderation of these changes (e.g., by gender) was absent or inconsistent. Third, we examined how the first romantic relationship affected well-being aspects longitudinally. In both the short and long term, the first romantic relationship was associated with increases in life satisfaction and decreases in loneliness but not depressivity. Together, the findings indicate moderate average well-being risks when staying single in emerging adulthood. Well-being differences between consistent singles and eventually partnered respondents were minimal in adolescence but were exacerbated with prolonged singlehood. This highlights difficulties for first partnership formation in the later 20s because, concurrently, low well-being predicted remaining in singlehood longer. We discuss critical questions for singlehood theory development. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).

Singlehood is becoming a more visible lifestyle option in many nations worldwide. Despite this, there has been little research on the cultural factors that influence well‐being in singlehood. Filial piety, a key virtue within Chinese culture, emphasizes respect, obedience, and care toward one's elders. Filial piety may be associated with lower well‐being in singlehood as individuals may perceive their singlehood status as a failure to fulfill familial marital expectations. This negative link between filial piety and singles' well‐being may be partly offset by a closer connection with family (and thus higher well‐being) that is also associated with endorsement of filial piety. We investigated the associations of Chinese singles' authoritarian and reciprocal filial piety beliefs with family life satisfaction and well‐being in singlehood (i.e., desire for a partner, satisfaction with singlehood, fear of being single). Data from two samples (total N = 1655) revealed a statistical suppression effect suggesting that an overall negative relation between reciprocal filial piety and well‐being in singlehood was partly offset by filial piety's relation to higher satisfaction with family life. We discuss the notion that pressure for singles to partner may often be embedded in relationships that simultaneously make singles' lives better.

Young adults increasingly abstain from committed romantic relationships. However, psychological theories of singlehood are lacking and it remains unclear who selects into remaining single throughout emerging adulthood and how consistent singles’ well-being is affected over time. Here, we included 17,390 initially never partnered respondents from three panel studies from the UK and Germany providing 110,261 yearly observations from ages 16 to 29. First, we used survival analysis to predict who remained single. Young adults with lower well-being, male gender, higher education, and living alone or with parents stayed single longer. Second, we compared within-person age trajectories of life satisfaction, loneliness, and depressivity between consistent singles and eventually partnered respondents. Across emerging adulthood, consistent singles experienced comparatively stronger life satisfaction decreases and loneliness increases. Well-being deficits became more pronounced in the later 20s, when depressivity increases also diverged between groups. Evidence for moderation of these changes (e.g., by gender) was absent or inconsistent. Third, we examined how the first romantic relationship affected well-being aspects longitudinally. In both the short and long term, the first romantic relationship was associated with increases in life satisfaction and decreases in loneliness but not depressivity. Together, the findings indicate moderate average well-being risks when staying single in emerging adulthood. Well-being differences between consistent singles and eventually partnered respondents were minimal in adolescence but were exacerbated with prolonged singlehood. This highlights difficulties for first partnership formation in the later 20s because, concurrently, low well-being predicted remaining in singlehood longer. We discuss critical questions for singlehood theory development.

Research involving self-report methods risks volunteer bias, which can undermine validity by attracting particular participant types. What is the risk of such bias when participants choose studies on online recruitment platforms? The current study (Study 1: N = 1,595; M _age = 28.45; Study 2: N = 2,777; M _age = 31.18) examined volunteer bias in online studies, using the context of recruiting individuals for singlehood and romantic relationship research. Participants were recruited via Prolific for a study about “people’s lifestyles,” or “singlehood [or romantic relationships] and people’s lifestyles.” We assessed and compared their demographics, individual differences, feelings about singlehood/partnership, and well-being. No consistent differences emerged across recruitment framings, suggesting that advertisement wording did not selectively attract distinct Prolific participants. These data support one aspect of the validity of online singlehood and relationship research, suggesting that low-effort studies conducted on online platforms may suffer less from volunteer bias than other research recruitment strategies.

The casual sex literature has mostly ignored the fact that casual sexual encounters typically occur in the broader context of lives lived single. This study aimed to address this gap by examining the casual sex experiences of single people. Using a discovery (Study 1, N = 747) and replication/extension (Study 2, N = 483) design, we investigated the frequency and characteristics of casual sexual relationships during singlehood and explored factors distinguishing singles who do and do not engage in casual sex in the domains of attachment, singlehood satisfaction, and wellbeing. Within our samples, 15.1% and 26.1% of singles reported being sexually active. These sexual relationships were characterized by limited exclusivity, low emotional closeness, and little interest in transitioning to a committed romantic relationship. Across both studies, singles engaging in casual sex reported lower attachment avoidance, greater sexual satisfaction, and higher self‐perceived mate value compared to those not sexually active, challenging previous research linking casual sex participation with negative outcomes. Considering casual sex as one part of lives lived single may provide a clearer picture of both decisions around casual sex opportunities and thriving during singlehood.