Loneliness, Sexuality, and Singlehood

This study investigated the associations between loneliness and sexual desire and between loneliness and sexual satisfaction in single individuals. Loneliness can motivate people to look for social connection, and sexual desire can motivate people to look for new partners (a form of social connection). When controlling for depression, I expected lonelier individuals to experience more sexual desire and less sexual satisfaction. To investigate these associations, I collected data from single individuals using online surveys. I used rating scales to measure the constructs mentioned above. A total of 642 participants were recruited on Prolific. I used multiple regression models to test the associations between loneliness and sexual desire and loneliness and sexual satisfaction in singles. Loneliness was not a significant predictor of sexual desire. However, loneliness significantly predicted sexual satisfaction. Loneliness does not appear to be related to sexual desire, and it is weakly associated with sexual satisfaction.