With Valentine’s Day on February 14, hopes of single Americans varies when it comes to their romantic lives, as some dream of serious relationships, some look for casual dates and some avoid dating altogether, according to a new survey by the Pew Research Centre.
BEING SINGLE
The survey said that about six-in-ten young men want to be single. The PEW centre said that overall, three-in-ten U S adults are single, which means they are not married, living with a partner or in a committed romantic relationship.
It said that people under 30 are the most likely age group to be single, with roughly half (47%) falling into this category. In contrast, 30- to 49-year old are the least likely to be single (21%). About three-in-ten adults ages 50 to 64 or 65 and older say they are single, the survey found.
On age and gender analysis, the survey found that 63% of men under 30 describe themselves as single, compared with 34% of women in the same age group. Younger men are also far more likely than older men to be single – a pattern that is not as straightforward among women. Women ages 18 to 29, for example, are just as likely as women 65 and older to report being single, it said.
The proportion of unpartnered adults also varies by race and ethnicity, educational attainment and sexual orientation. They said that 47% of Black adults report being single, higher than the share among other racial and ethnic groups.
NOT INTERESTED IN BEING STRUCK
Among Americans who are single, the survey finds that 57% say they are not currently looking for a relationship or casual dates. And for even among adults who are “single and looking,” the survey says that not everyone is interested in the same type of relationship. Roughly one-in-five single adults (22%) say they are open to either a committed relationship or casual dates, while 13% say they are only looking for a committed relationship and 7% are only looking for casual dates. In total, 42% of single Americans are looking for some kind of romance, the PEW Centre said.
Single men are more likely than their female counterparts to be searching for romantic experiences. Half of these men are looking for a committed relationship and/or casual dates, while 35% of single women say the same.
Younger singles are also more likely than older singles to say they are currently looking for dates and/or a relationship. Some 57% of unpartnered adults under 50 say this, compared with 36% of those 50 to 64 and 16% of those 65 and older.
LOWER PERCENTAGE LOOKING FOR RELATIONSHIPS
ThePew Centre said that about 42% of single Americans say they are looking for a committed romantic relationship and/or casual dates, down from 49% in 2019. It said that the drop was largely driven by single men, who are now 11 percentage points less likely than in 2019 to say they are looking for a committed relationship and/or casual dates (50% in July 2022, down from 61% in 2019). During the same time frame, there has been no significant change in the share of single women who are looking for a relationship or casual dates: 35% said this in 2022, compared with 38% in 2019.
GENDER
Among singles who are on dating, the PEW centre said that about half (51%) say they are open to either a committed relationship or casual dates. Looking at those who are only open to one of these options, daters are more likely to be exclusively looking for a committed relationship over casual dates only (31% vs. 17%).
But this varies by gender: 56% of men who are looking for romance say they’re open to either a committed relationship or casual dates, while only 44% of single-and-looking women say the same. Single-and-looking women, in turn, are more likely than their male counterparts to say they are only looking for a committed romantic relationship (41% vs. 25%), it said.
ONLINE DATING
The report mentioned that nearly half of single-and-looking adults have turned to online dating in the past year. Some 45% of single Americans who are searching for a relationship and/or casual dates have used an online dating platform within the past year, including those who were on one currently as of the July 2022 survey.
Younger single-and-looking adults are more likely than their older counterparts to have used a dating site or app in this time period. Roughly half (53%) of adults under 50 who are single and looking have used an online dating platform recently, compared with about a quarter (26%) of single-and-looking adults 50 and older.
