The Personality Traits That Make Being Single More Likely

What's The Line?

Beyond their general opinion about being single and wanting (or not wanting) a relationship, there are some other notable differences between these two groups.

A 2022 study published in the Personality and Individual Differences journal discovered that there are two personality traits that create a stark divide between voluntary and involuntary singles, those traits being 'openness to experience' and 'extraversion.'

Different levels of those two traits indicated different attitudes towards singlehood and relationships as a whole.

Plotting The Map

Specifically, high levels of 'openness to experience' were most associated with being voluntarily single, while low levels of 'extraversion' were most associated with being involuntarily single.

The study interviewed over 1,400 people with an average age of 32 years old. They were asked about their current relationship status and then made to complete a personality test known as The Big 5.

The Big 5 are five dimensions of personality that we all fall upon, with the axes being agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and then our two stars, extraversion and openness.

Mostly Unaffected

Most of the participants were in relationships, with 35% reporting themselves as not single but also not married, but the next biggest group was involuntary singles at 20%.

Voluntary singles, or those who marked themselves as 'single by choice,' made up only 8% of the group. The smallest group in total, though, was a more vague category called 'single for other reasons,' clocking in at only 4%.

The results of this study, when analyzing prominent traits and correlating them with reported relationship status, found that agreeableness, neuroticism, and conscientiousness played no role in someone being single.

Putting Yourself Out THere

Extraversion and openness, on the other hand...

To put it plainly, being more extroverted decreases someone's likelihood of being single. As the study reports, "As indicated by the Odds Ratio, a one unit increase in extraversion increased the probability to be in the 'in an intimate relationship' category than in the 'involuntarily single' category by 40.3 percent...[and the] probability to be in the 'between relationships' category rather than in the 'involuntarily single' category by 38.5 percent."

Keeping Things Open

However, openness was directly tied to someone being single by choice. "One unit increase in the openness increased the probability to be in the 'single by choice' than in the 'in an intimate relationship' category by 58.7 percent."

There was another connection made here, though. Not only do these two traits correlate to singleness, whether voluntary or not, but they also affect the length of time that someone remains single.

"One unit increase in [extraversion] was associated with a decrease in the length of the spell of singlehood by 2.19 years...[And a unit] increase in [openness] was associated with a 1.38 years increase in the spell of singlehood."

Alone At Length

So, to sum up, introverts (those with low extraversion scores) are more likely to be involuntarily single and have longer bouts of being single. For openness, those more open to experience are more likely to be voluntarily single, with their bouts of singleness being shorter than the introverts.

This study helps shine a light on the reasons why someone might be single, whether by choice or not. Somebody who's been single for a long time despite wanting a relationship is likely a pretty big introvert, for example.

Freely Moving

Meanwhile, somebody who happily chooses to remain single does so because they want to experience more of what life has to offer, refusing to be tied down or kept in one place.

It's important to note that neither of these traits is inherently bad or inherently virtuous on their own. There's nothing wrong with being introverted or preferring routine, and there's nothing immediately better about being extroverted or wanting a more varied life.

What matters is how you use these traits and how much you let them interfere with your life. If they're causing you trouble, then that's an issue you can investigate now that you know where to look.

One Over The Other

Just as those traits are no better or worse than each other, neither is being single over being in a relationship. No matter if you are voluntarily single, involuntarily single, in a relationship, married, or in any other scenario, all that matters is that you're happy. You're not better for being in a long-term relationship, just as you're not better for choosing to be single.

If you're involuntarily single and find yourself struggling, it's worth looking at these traits, yes, but it's also worth finding other things that make you happy that aren't dating. Find validation and fulfillment in yourself first, then walk back into the dating world with fresh confidence to spare.

With that new outlook and assuredness that you're ready to meet the love of your life, that's the perfect time to seek some more celestial advice.

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