Geoff MacDonald 🇨🇦

Need fewer gifs in your recommendation letters imho.

On the Value of Just Observing What descriptive research revealed about singles' sexual satisfaction

If descriptive research is supposed to be one cure for the replication crisis, why do reviewers and editors keep downgrading descriptive research for not advancing theory? I explore this (in the context of sex and singlehood) in my latest Substack post. unromanticprof.substack.com/p/on-the-val...

It's become an academic trope to "challenge the narrative that...". But how do we know the narrative being challenged is really a thing? I go down this road in my latest Substack post. unromanticprof.substack.com/p/on-sith-bu...

The Singlehood Meme that Won’t Die An oft repeated factoid is based on a retracted analysis

If you've heard that unmarried, childless women are society's happiest group, then you've heard the singlehood meme that won't die. unromanticprof.substack.com/p/the-single...

BBC Radio 4 - AntiSocial, Are women better off single? An article about "embarrassing" boyfriends prompts a debate over women's singledom

Played the role of the research nerd in this discussion of whether it's embarrassing to have a boyfriend. www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...

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journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

Does solitude bring freedom? It depends who you socialize with

Does solitude offer more autonomy than social interaction? A new paper with @elainehoan.bsky.social and @jessiesun.bsky.social says it depends who you're interacting with. Read about it in my most recent substack post (link to paper in comments). unromanticprof.substack.com/p/does-solit...

Sombrio Beach, British Columbia.

Everyone has been single The strange hole in the middle of singlehood studies

What do you miss when you focus on social structural accounts of singlehood? Maybe people's own experience. My latest Substack post. unromanticprof.substack.com/p/everyone-h...

A diverse group of young adults seated in a circle, engaging in a focused discussion inside a bright room with large windows.

📊 New research finds people often feel less autonomous during social interactions, but interaction partner matters.

Authors: @elainehoan.bsky.social, @gmacdonalduoft.bsky.social, and @jessiesun.bsky.social

Read more in Social Psychological and Personality Science: ow.ly/sOOO50Xe6Ku

Done.

Sage Journals: Discover world-class research Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.

Is social interaction a tradeoff of autonomy for belonging compared to being alone? New paper by phenom @elainehoan.bsky.social says yes if you're interacting with strangers, no if you're interacting with friends/family. With a romantic partner you gain in both. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

A User's Guide to Critique in Academia I disagree that my research is not done with integrity

I received a critique of my work that I found unsatisfying, and in my latest substack post I use research on relationship conflict to try to figure out why. unromanticprof.substack.com/p/a-users-gu...

Researchers studied the shift from singlehood to dating. Three key areas stood out. Romantic relationships are often assumed to enhance well-being, but evidence for that assumption remains debated. A new study tracked over 3,000 single adults to examine whether entering a romantic re...

Coverage of MacLab work on transition from singlehood to partnership. www.psypost.org/researchers-...

We don't know the impact of singlism The unknown unknowns in singlehood studies

The story in singlehood studies is that singlism has strong negative effects on well-being. But how good are the data? unromanticprof.substack.com/p/we-dont-kn...

Standards of Evidence in Singlehood Studies On the promise and peril of “cheater techniques”

In my new substack post I discuss why accusations of "cheater techniques" are bad branding but good science. But what happens when you apply a "cheater technique" analysis to one of singlehood studies' central concepts, the "single at heart"? tinyurl.com/4pty7e2m

How should we talk about happy and unhappy singles? When does avoiding “deficit narratives” turn into toxic positivity?

New post at The Unromantic on why singlehood studies should not make avoiding "deficit narratives" its only priority. unromanticprof.substack.com/p/how-should...

The Unromantic | Geoff MacDonald | Substack An attempt at a sober look at research on singlehood and relationships. Click to read The Unromantic, by Geoff MacDonald, a Substack publication. Launched 2 days ago.

The Substack: unromanticprof.substack.com

The paper: journals.sagepub.com/doi/epub/10....

Is the idea that getting into a romantic relationship increases well-being a myth? A new MacLab paper says no. And I had so much to say about this work, I started a Substack: The Unromantic. Links for the paper and the Substack in replies.

Excited to be a part of what should be a very interesting roundtable.

They Put Off Relationships Until They Earned Enough Money

MacLab in the New York Times: www.nytimes.com/2025/08/24/b...

Probably still better than most of the etchings I've been invited to see.

The only other time I followed an account based on name alone was Stone Cold Jane Austen.

Slightly diminish a band:

The Capable Capable Bosstones

Couple on a weekend date at cute cafe

Money can’t buy love - but it might make us more open to it, according to a new study #UofT 💗 uoft.me/bJy

Post a GIF of who you wanted to be as a kid!

Why Do You Want a Romantic Relationship? Individual Differences in Motives for Romantic Relationship Pursuit - Geoff MacDonald, Serena Thapar, William S. Ryan, Joanne M. Chung, Elaine Hoan, Yoobin Par... Relationship science currently lacks a theoretical approach to capture the variety of motivations potentially underlying the pursuit of romantic relationships. ...

People who pursue romantic relationships because they genuinely want connection and intimacy—not because of pressure or insecurity—are more likely to end up in a relationship. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

Good coverage of our paper on individual differences in motivations for dating.