Project description
Investigating why young adults have more and longer periods of singleness
For many young adults, staying single for a long period of time is now the norm, and the idea of marriage or cohabitation is a far-fetched scenario. It is hypothesized that nowadays young adults are going through a more difficult process finding the right partner or maintaining a relationship, or they are deliberately choosing to be single. The EU-funded SINGLETON project aims to shed light on this phenomenon. To that end, it will identify the relationship formation pathways of young adults in industrialised countries. The project will integrate theories from various fields such as demography, sociology and developmental psychology and create a new research tradition in singleness studies.
Objective
The intellectual challenge that the Singleton project will tackle is identifying the relationship formation pathways of young adults in industrialized countries. This project departs from the currently couple centred research approach of young adulthood in which developmental pathways always seem to lead to Mount Marriage or Cohabitation Hill. In contrast, we argue that there is a fundamental hidden relationship pathway in young adulthood where individuals might be experiencing difficulties in finding the right partner, maintaining a relationship or where they make a deliberate choice to remain single and for longer periods.
This Singleton trajectory is characterized by a sequence of relatively short-lived committed relationships. The central question addressed in the Singleton project is therefore why, how, when and for whom this relationship trajectory manifests itself. Accordingly the project has four interrelated aims. A first aim is the empirical description of the share of Singletons in three birth cohorts. Second, the project will look at the internal dynamics of relationship formation, maintenance and dissolution from a multi-actor perspective to identify differences between young adults. In the third objective, the project will look into how social networks, educational trajectories and career prospects influence the development of relationship trajectories in young adulthood. A final aim will look at the macro level and incorporate the rise of a single culture as part of a new explanatory framework for understanding the Singleton trajectory. Methodologically, we apply a Longitudinal Explanatory Mixed Methods model (2 quantitative and 2 qualitative waves) concentrating on 3 cohorts in young adulthood. This project innovates on a theoretical and methodological level by integrating theories from various fields (demography, sociology and developmental psychology), redefining determinants and launching a much needed new research tradition in Single Studies.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
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Topic(s)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
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Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-ERC - HORIZON ERC Grants
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2021-ADG
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
2000 Antwerpen
Belgium
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