Are People Happier in Relationships?

"The paper was just published in the Personality and Individual Differences journal. Rather than comparing different people at a single point in time, our study tracked the same individuals as their relationship status changed, moving in and out of relationships, marriages, and relationships of varying quality. This design allows us to ask a crucial question: When people's relationship situations change, does their emotional well-being change, too?"

"Across more than a decade of data, people tended to experience higher emotional well-being during periods of an intimate relationship than when single. When individuals transitioned from singlehood into a relationship, they reported: Higher life satisfaction More positive emotions, such as happiness and enjoyment Fewer negative emotions, such as sadness, depression, and despair The reverse also held true: When people became single again, emotional well-being generally declined."

Longitudinal data following more than 12,000 German adults over 13 years tracked the same individuals as they moved into and out of relationships, marriages, and relationships of varying quality. Across more than a decade, people tended to experience higher emotional well-being while in intimate relationships than when single. Transitions from singlehood into a relationship were associated with higher life satisfaction, more positive emotions (happiness and enjoyment), and fewer negative emotions (sadness, depression, despair). The reverse held when people became single again, with general declines in emotional well-being. These within-person effects suggest relationship status changes contribute to well-being changes rather than simple selection. Effect sizes were mostly modest; relationships are not emotional cures.

Read at Psychology Today