Women More Satisfied With Single Life Than Men? Study Explores Reasons

What Study Says?

The study highlighted that, “The experience of singles has been largely overlooked in relationship science, garnering a need for understanding correlates of singles’ well-being.” Study says that relationship science has predominantly occupied itself with examining the experiences of those whose relationship status is partnered. However, singlehood is also a relationship status that has only recently begun to receive systematic research attention.

The study mentioned in Sage Journal suggests that one demographic characteristic that has been of long-standing interest in psychological research is gender; a large body of work has documented a persistent gender gap in subjective well-being, often demonstrating that women report greater well-being than men.

Extant research suggests that having a romantic partner has more benefits, in terms of higher subjective well-being, for men compared to women. The primary theoretical explanation for these well-being differences is that men’s romantic partners tend to be their primary source of perceived social support. Yet, there is surprisingly little empirical evidence that perceived social support accounts for these gender differences.

A study conducted by Hoan and Department of Psychology professor Geoff MacDonald suggests that women fared better flying solo than men. They are happier with their single status, the quality of their lives, the quality of their sex lives and they desire a partner less.

Hoan says the results build on existing research that shows men fear singlehood more than women do, and that they struggle to navigate the expectations of traditional masculinity.

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Why Are Women More Satisfied With Single Life?

According to Karima, as women increasingly prioritise their personal growth, independence, and happiness, embracing singlehood as a fulfilling choice has become more empowering. However, in our pursuit of connection, we must recognise the value of presence and undiluted attention. Notably, she mentioned that Happn users have highlighted their priorities: 67% value independence, 33% seek financial stability, and 25% prioritise personal growth.

The study reveals that this connects to the finding that single women are more sexually fulfilled than single men, perhaps also because they may have more sexual freedom and can focus on their own pleasure instead of prioritising a male partner’s.

Additionally, it is worth noting that women may be more satisfied with their single lives overall because they usually have bigger social networks to rely on for support. They also have financial independence, meaning income as a traditional advantage of a partnership is not as important as it used to be.

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