RESEARCH_FILE
Bella M. DePaulo
University of California, Santa Barbara
Known for:Naming and documenting 'singlism' — the stereotyping and discrimination against single adults
SEE THE PRACTICE
Turn a thought this research explains into one clear move.
THE THOUGHT
“Still single at my age means something's wrong with me”
YOUR RECORDED RESPONSE
“Single is a status. The 'something's wrong with me' explanation is a script I absorbed—not a finding.”
ONE PRIVATE MOVE
Write down three rejections from the past year and next to each one, write the actual reason the other person gave (or likely had). Then write what you added to it. Notice the gap. Keep it private.
Key findings
- 2005
Single adults are targets of stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination — 'singlism' — rooted in an 'Ideology of Marriage and Family' whose assumptions (that a sexual partnership is the one truly important peer relationship, and that partnered people are happier and more fulfilled) shaped both everyday culture and scientific claims about singles. Singles in Society and in Science ↗
- 2006
The stereotyping and discrimination against singles is largely unrecognized and often unapologetic: compared with married people, singles are judged as less mature, less well-adjusted and more self-centered, and face disadvantages in domains from housing to pay — while such treatment is rarely seen as prejudice at all. The Unrecognized Stereotyping and Discrimination Against Singles ↗