The Scientific Study of People Who Are Single:
An Annotated Bibliography


Bella M. DePaulo
Chair, Academic Advisory Board of the Spectrum Institute
Research and Policy Division of the
American Association for Single People (AASP)

January 2, 2004
 

 


1.  Singles and Subtypes of Singles
 

 
About Singles (Generally)

Scholarly

Adams, M. (1981). Living singly. In P. J. Stein (Ed.), Single Life: Unmarried Adults in Social Context (pp. 221-234). New York: St. Martin’s Press.

Adams, M. (1976). Single blessedness: Observations on the single status in married society. NY: Basic Books.

Austrom, D. (1984). The consequences of being single. NY: Peter Lang Publishing.

Austrom, D., & Hanel, K. (1985). Psychological issues of single life in Canada: An exploratory study. International Journal of Women’s Studies, 8, 12-23.

Burt, M. R., & Cohen, B. E. (1989). Differences among homeless single women, women with children, and single men. Social Problems, 36, 508-524.

Caplan, P. J. (1985). Single life and married life. International Journal of Women’s Studies, 8, 6-11.

Cargan, L., & Melko, M. (1982). Singles: Myths and realities. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.

Cockrum, J., & White, P. (1985). Influences on the life satisfaction of never-married men and women. Family Relations, 34, 551-516.

Cohen, M. (1987). Remaining single into midlife: An investigation of early family relationships, traumatic experiences, idealism/perfectionism, and fear of loss. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, The California School of Professional Psychology, Berkeley, CA.

Frazier, P., Arikian, N. Benson, S., Losoff, A., & Maurer, S. (1996). Desire for marriage and life satisfaction among unmarried heterosexual adults. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 13, 225-239.

Granqvist, P., & Hagekull, B. (2000). Religiosity, adult attachment, and why "singles" are more religious. The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 10, 111-123.

Ilfeld, F. W. (1976). Characteristics of current social stressors. Psychological Reports, 39, 1231-1247.

Johnston, M. W., & Eklund, S. J. (1984). Life-adjustment of the never-married: A review with implications for counseling. Journal of Counseling and Development, 63, 230-236.

Levinson, D. J. (1978). Seasons of a man’s life. NY: Ballantine.

Riker, A. P., & Brisbane, H. E. (1984). Married and Single Life. Peoria, IL: Bennett & McKnight. (Textbook)

Schwartz, M. A., & Wolf, P. A. (1976). Singlehood and the American experience: Prospects for a changing status. Humboldt Journal of Social Relations, 4, 17-24.

Schwartzberg, N. (1991). Single young adults. In F. H. Brown (Ed.), Reweaving the Family Tapestry (pp.77-93). New York: W. W. Norton.

Schwartzberg, N., Berliner, K., & Jacob, D. (1995). Single in a married world: A life cycle framework for working with the unmarried adult. NY: Norton.

Shostak, A. B. (1987). Singlehood. In M. B. Sussman & S. K. Steinmetz (Eds.), Handbook of Marriage and the Family (pp.355-367). New York: Plenum Press.

Spreitzer, E., & Riley, L. E. (1974). Factors associated with singlehood. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 533-542.

Staples, R. (1981). Black singles in America. In P. J. Stein (Ed.), Single Life: Unmarried Adults in Social Context (pp. 40-51). New York: St. Martin’s Press.

Starr, J. R., & Carns, D. E. (1972, February). Singles in the city. Society, 43-48.

Stein, P. J. (1975, October). Singlehood: An alternative to marriage. The Family Coordinator, 489-503.

Stein, P. J. (1976). Single. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

Stein, P. J. (Ed.). (1981). Single life: Unmarried adults in social context. NY: St. Martin’s Press.

Taylor, P. L. (1998). Attitudes toward marriage among African American singles: A test of four perspectives. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles, CA.

Essays and other Non-Academic Writings

Allon, N. (1979). Urban life styles. Dubuque, IA: Wm. C. Brown. (Chapter 4. Singles bars.)

Chasman, D., & Jhee, C. (Eds.). (1999). Here lies my heart: Essays on why we marry, why we don’t, and what we find there. Boston, MA: Beacon Press.

Holland, B. (1992). One’s company: Reflections on living alone. NY: Ballantine Books.

Simenauer, J., & Carroll, D. (1982). Singles: The new Americans. NY: New American Library.

Watters, E. (2003). Urban tribes: A generation redefines friendship, family, and commitment. NY: Bloomsbury USA.
 

 
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