Does romantic involvement benefit everyone? Testing a foundational tenet in relationship research through the case of asexuality

It is well established that romantic relationships can benefit well-being and buffer against loneliness. But is that true for everyone? In the present investigation, we put this foundational tenet of relationship science to the test by examining whether asexual people (i.e., people who generally do not experience sexual attraction and desire) similarly benefit from romantic involvement. Results from the BBC Loneliness Experiment showed that, unlike heterosexuals (N = 36464) and other sexual minorities (N = 3684), asexuals (N = 1443) did not benefit from being in a romantic relationship, experiencing similar levels of loneliness regardless of their relationship status or whether their romantic relationship was satisfying. However, being in a satisfying relationship did protect asexuals against expectations of loneliness in old age. These results highlight the importance of including populations that are typically excluded from research to test the robustness of established theories and empirical findings in relationship science.