Would you say men are less happy than women when they are single or the other way around? In the last couple of years, the number of single people has increased a lot among both women and men. However, psychologists have noticed that singlehood is not the same for each group: many women enjoy their life without a partner whereas men tend to feel a bit sad. But, why is this happening? Let’s find out!
Relationships and happiness
Having close and significant relationships is one of the most important keys to being happy and living longer. People with strong links tend to have a fulfilled life. When it comes to a romantic relationship, both men and women normally have someone they can talk with and share emotions.
However, when someone is single their happiness can depend on the type of social relationships they have outside of romantic love. There’s where we see differences between women and men.
Loneliness
According to a study from the Pew Research Center, the amount of single men has increased more than the number of women. In 1990, this was the other way around, but today there are more single men than women in the United States.
Most of these men without a partner have never been married and, something curious is that, both men and women who live single tend to show worse economic and social results than those who are married or live with their couple. Yet, women seem to enjoy being single more than men, and experts believe the reason behind it is social relationships.
Stronger social connections
One of the main explanations is that women tend to have more social and emotional connections than men. Women create wider connections of friends and family members they can talk with and ask for support. However, many men have smaller groups and are less intimate.
What’s more, studies show that women feel happier with their friendships whereas men (specially young men) say they have a difficult time expressing their emotions or talking about personal issues with their friends. For example, men tend to spend time with their groups doing activities (sports or games) and women make the most of that time to talk, share experiences and emotionally connect with their friends.
On the other hand, heterosexual men normally depend almost completely on their wives or girlfriends to have that support. When they are single, they lose that only point of emotional connection which can boost the feeling of loneliness.
Feminine independence
For women, being single also means feeling free from some traditional roles like being in charge of the house or acting as if they were the ‘’mothers’’ of the relationship. Today, many women without a partner enjoy not having to play that role.
Also, they have more opportunities to be economically independent with no man behind them. This allows them to live their singlehood with more freedom and satisfaction.
Pleasure and intimate life
Another point the study mentions is the sexual aspect. For many women, sexual pleasure is not the most important thing for their general wellbeing. This is why some consider that being in a relationship is a “net loss” — it doesn’t necessarily make their lives better.
Interestingly, research shows that single women report having a more pleasurable sex life than single men. This could be because women find fulfillment in other areas of life, not just through romantic or sexual relationships.
What single men can learn from women’s singlehood
Experts from Psyche suggest that men can learn from the way women approach singlehood. Instead of depending only on a romantic partner for emotional support, men could focus on building and maintaining strong friendships, staying socially connected, and taking better care of their emotional well-being.
Society often teaches men to suppress emotions or to view emotional openness as weakness. But psychologists emphasize that developing closer connections — with friends, family, or communities — can bring just as much happiness and fulfillment as being in a romantic relationship.