Question

People who are single are happier because they are living their most authentic lives without having to worry about someone else.

Comments

While it's true that being single can offer more freedom and the chance to focus on personal growth, it's important to remember that happiness and authenticity can also be found in relationships. It really depends on the individual’s values and what makes them feel fulfilled. Different paths to happiness work for different people!

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While your argument about being single allowing people to live their most authentic lives is strong, the source provided doesn’t fully support the claim. Some users agree that being single has benefits, like more freedom and financial stability, but also point out that it can have drawbacks, especially for mental well-being. Others argue that both relationships and single life have pros and cons, and what’s "better" depends on the individual. Since this is a personal and subjective topic, it’s hard to measure definitively.

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while this could be true for some, I don't feel you have quite enough evidence and research to make this big of a claim.

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although I agree that people should be able to be happy while single I do not agree that it is always a solution. i think different people need different things and some people are better off with someone else, i do not think this article gives enough information to make a claim that the general public is happier single

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This is more of a preference rather than a fact. Everyone can have different styles and opinions, so there isn’t a way to tell if people are happier single unless everyone single feels the same way.

Answer 1

The article explains that being single nowadays leads to greater happiness and overall enjoyment in mundane activities. The claim that "single people are happier" is subjective and can be taken from person to person. The article links data explaining the difficulties of dating and the overall rise of single people. Although, yes, dating is different from how it used to be with online dating apps and new social norms, these articles don't support the claim. The data they provide is about divorce rates which isn't enough to back up their article. I believe that this claim is too subjective and they don't provide the correct data to support their claim.

https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2020/08/20/nearly-half-of-u-s-adults-say-dating-has-gotten-harder-for-most-people-in-the-last-10-years/

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0265407515597564

Comments

I like how you explain and identify what was false in that claim, because it helps specify that It was not a fact and more of an opinion, making it easier for readers to understand what they are reading.

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This is a good thorough fact check with reliable sources. I think you could have used more information from the original article.

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You make a great point about the subjectivity of happiness and how personal experiences can vary. I also agree that using divorce rates to argue that single people are happier doesn’t directly support the claim—it only shows that more people are staying single. It would be stronger if the article included studies specifically measuring happiness levels in single versus partnered individuals rather than just focusing on the challenges of dating.

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I like how you explained your point of view. You broke it down in a way that makes sense and also explained how happiness is subjective to each person. When you bring data into it, it shows the opposite actually with the divorce rates. Overall good response.

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I agree with you, that this claim seems to be subjective. While people can pull in data like divorce rates, poll people, etc. it cannot be very reliable because this is a matter based on opinion. I like how you brought in evidence and sources, but also stayed with the claim that it is up to personal opinion. I also like how you brought in a counterclaim, but stayed with your original decision.

Answer 2

I think this article focuses too much on why single people are happy but doesn't really give any information to compare to the happiness of people in a relationship. Additionally, may be too subjective to make a claim.

Comments

I agree, there has not been thoruogh studies on whether or not single people are happier on average. The only study I could found that relate to this claims the oppisite, with CNN reporting that married people are happier on average (https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/09/health/marriage-happiness-wellness/index.html#:~:text=Over%20the%20survey%20period%2C%20married,year%2C%20according%20to%20the%20data.) however happiness is subjective and diffcult to define. Therefore I agree with your comment, this is more of an opinion then a real verifiable claim.

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I agree with you I think its subjective to make a claim who is happier or not. Someones happiness is something that can change in an instant. A couple can be happy and then the next day it can all fall apart and they can be unhappy same goes with a single person. Allthough I believe that you are probably happier with a partner I still believe that it is hard to judge making me agree with your claim that its hard to actually find the correct answer.

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I agree with you on the fact that the claim is subjective. Different people have different relationships, and it's not reasonable to make one whole claim off of so many different experiences. This claim is difficult to have one direct answer to.

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I agree because it can all depend on who is being studied. There are different positions someone can be in and how that relationship is going. Single people, while they have a lot of time to focus on themselves, can be miserable without a partner and wish they had someone like that in their life.

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I totally agree that this claim is incredibly subjective, and there are far too many moving parts to make a definitive claim on the matter. People not in relationships indeed have more time on their hands, which could be spent bettering themselves and their lives. However not all people are the same, and what's good for one person doesn't mean it's a universal truth.

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I love that we are both here for an assignment lol I hope you get a good score! Also good luck on the quiz if you haven't done it yet

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I agree to be able to find who is happier they would have to directly compare single people and coupled people, which would still not give a definitive answer as there are variables that need to be accounted for.

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I like your answer to this claim because you point out the flaw of this fact being an opinion. It would have been helpful to hear an argument that states that people in relationships are happier.

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I agree I think there is too many outside factors and no real evidence to support the claim. We can't base true or false on something without enough evidence.

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I like how you mentioned that there is truth to their claim about people who are single being happy but also mentioned that there is no real evidence saying that people who are in relationships are unhappy.

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I think this is a great comparison because there should be a comparison to people who are in a relationship and the happiness they get from that as well.

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I agree that there are other kinds of factors that influence the degree of happiness. It need more evidences or papers to prove the idea that people who are single are happier.

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i agree because i think there needs to be a study of the happiness of people in relationships vs single people.

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I agree with this claim. It's important to bring in multiple perspectives when claiming something to be true. I'd agree this topic is a little too subjective. I would love to see data comparing people in a relationship to people who are not.

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I completely agree the article does highlight of happiness and the benefits of being single but does not have any direct colonization of how that compares to people in relationships and solely focuses on that single perspective on that one only.

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I like how you stated that the article fails to compare the happiness of single people to those in relationships. People who read the claim automatically assume that the two groups were being compared, "People who are single are happier" happier than those in relationships. But if there is no comparison, then who are they happier than?

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I really like this response. But you don't really give any facts in your response. it would be nice to see if there is some science behind this claim, but at the end of the day I believe it is subjective to the person like you said. there is not one true or false answer to this claim.

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I think the response is good but it needs to be expanded upon more and provide a source or data backing up what you said.

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I agree with your response. While some people are happier being single, there are also a lot of other people that are happier in relationships. A comparison between the two would be interesting but since this is so subjective it doesn't really matter.

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i mean, thank you for your comment but I cant necessarily expand upon what i said, emotions are subjective and happiness is not a quantifiable attribute and thus the statement cannot be proven or disproven, hence why I marked it as such

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You make a great point about the author not mentioning the comparison of single to people in a relationship's happiness overall. Just giving the data that said that there are less married people now is not a sufficient claim to examine if a single person is happier. You had a great idea that I did not think of before of what the author could of done to make this article more truthful. Great response!

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I agree with your response that the author is not comparing the amount of happiness in a relationship to the amount of happiness when single. This alone defeats the author's entire claim because you cannot prove cause without analyzing both sides.

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I completely agree with what you are saying, especially when you say how this topic is too subjective to make a claim on. However, to further advance this fact-check, the use of evidence and potentially linking an article backing up your statement could be beneficial and making your answer more reliable. You could possibly find an article that discusses the happiness of people in marriages, etc.

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I agree with your response but I'd like to see an article or piece of evidence attached to bolster your claim. I agree this article can't be false or true and it is opinionated but I would love to understand why you came to that assumption and what led you here.

Answer 3

The relationship between happiness and relationship status is influenced by too many factors to be 100% true or false. Some people thrive in relationships, while others feel more fulfilled on their own.

Comments

I agree with your comment, however, including some factual evidence and citing your sources will make your point even more powerful. Some factors you could include when talking about the happiness in or out of relationships are their mental health, their socioeconomic status, their sexual orientation (maybe someone is asexual/aromantic and are happier without a partner because they were born like that).

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While I agree that individuals can have different experiences with relationships, asking whether single people are happier as a general trend can still be categorized as true or false. This is also a useful question, as it can inform policy, and help academics studying happiness explore what might make the world a happier place.

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While I agree with your comment, including sources to back up your claim about how individual experiences and what is considered happiness in this article and studies regarding such would make your argument much stronger. I recommend looking for a peer reviewed psychology journal article as it would hold more credibility in face of original claim.

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You're absolutely right—happiness and relationship status are influenced by so many factors. Personality, life experiences, social support, and mental health all play a role. For example, studies like the Harvard Study of Adult Development show that strong social connections (from partners, friends, or family) contribute to happiness. But some people feel more fulfilled and independent when single, and others find happiness in relationships that allow for personal growth. It's really about individual needs and circumstances-so trying to make broad claims misses that complexity.

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I agree completely with your answer, having a broad statement presented as fact cannot simply be true or false. Though next time I'd recommend adding a credible source to strengthen your answer, preferably by a trusted psychologist -- this would provide science and fact to your response.

Answer 4

This article addresses a subject that is hard to prove statistically and one that varies greatly from person to person. The main claim of the article though, is that people CAN be happier when single, but there isn't necessarily a cause and effect relationship between the two. 

This article originates from Buzzfeed, which is a source that thrives off of sensational headlines and opinions. Often times while they can be interesting, Buzzfeed isn't a great source for trustworthy reporting. Focusing on specifically the author, she has written a book as well as hosted a podcast. She has experience with the topic as she has been single for a long time. This can be both good and bad for validity as she has firsthand experience with the topic and can speak from that experience, but it also leads to a lot of bias on the topic and possible exaggeration or withholding of information on the topic. 

I was looking at other articles covering the same topic, and came across this one. The article is slightly different, as it focuses on the reverse claim, that single people are less happy than people in a relationship. The article sources research data showing that people who are single are unhappier. But the article also focuses on a more important claim: "those who dismissed relationships as unimportant were more satisfied with their lives than single young adults who were less dismissive of romantic relationships."

The ultimate point of this article is that the happiness of people based on relationship isn't necessarily a result of being in a relationship, but more the mindset and views of people regarding desire for a relationship. Ultimately, this is a really cloudy topic with no definite answer based purely on the happiness of anybody who is single. The true determining factor of relationship based happiness is more what you make of being in a relationship rather than whether or not you are in one. 

Comments

Good critique of the article and its potential bias! I really like how you pointed out Buzzfeed's tendency for sensationalism and its credibility. What you said on mindset being the real factor for happiness is really interesting and I think this would be even better if you looked at studies on attachment styles among diferent people and how they do influence happiness.

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I appreciated reading this fact check because it examines the claim without providing a definitive answer about whether single people are "happier" than those in relationships. Instead, it acknowledges that the answer depends on each individual's personal experience. I also liked how you used reliable sources to support your points, making your response clear and easy to follow.

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This is a great fact-check!! Your thought process is super insightful and thorough. There are many factors to this claim that can be hard to address and you did that super well! You also brought in another source that had a new perspective to consider. The source was also reliable and a good resource for this topic.

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This is a really great response I love how you talked about the source being untrustworthy as it consistently reports wrong information. I also really liked how you found a source with the inverse claim that was actually backed up by data.

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You make a great point about the difficulty of measuring happiness, as it’s subjective and varies from person to person. While Buzzfeed can sometimes lack reliability due to its sensationalist nature, the author’s personal experience adds insight, though it may introduce bias. The other article you found, showing that people who dismiss relationships can be more satisfied, adds an interesting perspective. Both articles offer valid views, but neither claim is universally true, as happiness depends on individual experiences and perspectives.

Answer 5

I think there is some truth to this claim in the sense that as a single person you are less limited by a spouse and thus have less responsibilities, don't have to make time for a relationship, and certainly when it comes to dating there is a lot of money to be saved. This may set you up for a more self-fulfilling life but I would argue that for many if not most people it's within our human nature to want to have a spouse and share life's greatest memories, challenges, burdens, and victories with someone else. These are all things that would give great meaning to life and cause abundant happiness and joy, even in the midst of trial. It is even evidenced in scripture that relationships are a good thing, a gift from God and meant to fulfill us and give us happiness, "Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.” This is of course in reference to the creation of Eve in Genesis 2:18(ESV).(https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Genesis%202%3A18&version=ESV) 

 It is interesting the statistics we are seeing today with a general rise in loneliness in society, lots of the research is linked to friendships but there has also been great connection to fewer marriages in our day and age. I believe that people who are in a healthy relationship are much more likely to be happy and avoid loneliness far more often. According to the American Psychiatric Association stating, "...with 30% of Americans aged 18-34 saying they were lonely every day or several times a week, and single adults are nearly twice as likely as married adults to say they have been lonely on a weekly basis over the past year (39% vs. 22%)." This statistic is highly alarming as it represents a nearly 2x increase in loneliness in those who are single. I believe that loneliness would be a huge roadblock to anyone trying to live a happy life. (https://www.psychiatry.org/news-room/news-releases/new-apa-poll-one-in-three-americans-feels-lonely-e#:~:text=Younger%20people%20were%20more%20likely,22%25).)

Comments

This factcheck is strong! It's a good start to have 2 articles that potentially target this fact in a different approach. While relationships in general are very personable and subject to the person in the relationship, that leads to various factors such as the ones you mentioned in the first sentence. I find it interesting that one of the sources take a biblical take on this since in those relationships were encouraged for happiness and evolution. I like that you did follow up with a statistic and the source that deals directly with people in my age range as well as a vast amount of people. Great job, unique take!

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This is a great fact-check, you argued your claim, gave good evidence, and described the evidence. I think the use of two sources that are considerably different is an exceptional idea because you can argue your point across stronger.   In the future, I would start with a short introduction and use the article you're arguing against in your response as well. Other than that awesome job!

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This is an informative and well backed-up fact check! The way that you used clear evidence and explained it is informative to the reader and connects the evidence to the claim well. Both sources also are significantly different, which allows for different perspectives and a contrast between supporting points. I thought that the statistics used were helpful, and contributed to supporting your claim.

Answer 6

This statement can be looked at through the eyes of a person who is single and someone who is in a relationship. The author who wrote this article is credible, Katie Camero, a health and wellness journalist https://www.usatoday.com/staff/8433499001/katie-camero (about her). It doesn't give enough information about people currently in a relationship or married couples. This specific article gives an intro to this idea, but not solid overall evidence. There are more articles that can show this with studies behind them with different perspectives. An example is https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/happy-together/202402/are-single-or-partnered-young-adults-happier it gives backing evidence and surveyed different people not just people who are single. 

Comments

I appreciate your use of multiple sources, and your perspective on the multiple perspectives that this claim can be seen from. Your use of Psychology Today as a source improves a lot upon the claim's original source which is a buzzfeed article. This claim is subjective and you did a great job showing that.

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I agree that this claim can be viewed from two different perspectives. I also found the blog you cited interesting and think it gives an honest claim with evidence to back it up.

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This was a very well done factcheck and I enjoy your use of multiple sources and stating their credibility as it adds a layer of reliable information. I also agree with your statement and how this topic can be subjective depending on the perspective.

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I appreciate your answer on this topic. I liked how you used multiple sources, which allows for the reader to compare the information and evaluate each source's reliability. I also thought the blog that you cited was very interesting, and made a clear, evidence based claim. This contrasts with the article by Camero, which includes less evidence and a more introductory summary of ideas.

Answer 7

The subject this article is trying to prove is too broad and there are many influencing factors to create an accurate statistic or evidence to support the claim. I am not sure BuzzFeed is the most accurate news source. The evidence they do provide does not prove much since the claim is too broad to be able to prove. Here is a study I found better explaining the claim of the BuzzFeed article. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/02654075221122887

Comments

This is a great fact-check, and I appreciate how effectively you identified that the subject is too broad. It's also important that you expressed your uncertainty about the reliability of the BuzzFeed article. I would agree that BuzzFeed is not the most reliable source. To further strengthen your point about its credibility, it might be helpful to research and include additional reliable sources or explain more specifically why BuzzFeed's credibility might be lacking.

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This was a good fact check overall! Although I agree that the article in question is too broad and there are too many factors to create a true cause and effect case, I think to benefit the fact check it would have been helpful to provide examples of where in the text this unclarity was spotted. Although to explain a bit more about the article you found, as opposed to only adding the link, could also help to build a stronger argument. Overall though, this was a good fact check.

Answer 8

I think this article does a really good job of showing you examples of people who are happy AND singe, but does not do a lot of work in proving that the two are at all related to each other. This article had no experiment or study that scientifically searched for a genuine answer to this question which is why I think it did not prove its point. I would also not consider buzzfeed to be the most credible source of information.

Comments

I think this fact-check does an excellent job of sharing a logical opinion on both the issue and the source. However, I fail to see any of your own sources. IT would be nice to see a source that you provided so that we could get a credible alternative.

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Thank you for pointing out the noncredible use of BuzzFeed as the only provided source. I completely agree with your statement that this is an extremely subjective subject with no concrete way to judge happiness levels in or out of a relationship. In fact, the exact opposite can be argued as well. Although I do not believe that it is as black and white as people in relationships are happy and single people are not, I would like to provide the counter argument with this source. I believe that not every case is the same and happiness applied to relationship status is very abstract and ever-changing.
https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/09/health/marriage-happiness-wellness/index.html#:~:text=Over%20the%20survey%20period%2C%20married,year%2C%20according%20to%20the%20data.

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i think this is a good factcheck, but it would be nice to see some sources of your own to make the factcheck more accurate and reliable, to further prove your point that the article isn't credible.

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You did bring out a valid point that the article does not have any strong studies or experiments to prove their claims. Without evidence, it's just anecdotal, and does not provide a direct correlation between singleness and happiness. It's easy to look at individual cases of people who are happy while single, but that doesn't account for the complexity of human happiness or relationships. For example, theres a study by the National Institute of Mental Health that discovered that happiness tends to be connected with the kind of social support that a person may have-a partner, friends, or family. Being single can definitely be a fulfilling choice for some people, but saying that it's a universal truth for happiness doesn't seem plausible without research. Curious to see a deeper dive into these variables!

Answer 9

According to Psychology Today, It is all up to personal interpretation of a relationship. If one perceives a relationship as important, they will most likely be more miserable if they are not coupled up,"They also found that those who dismissed relationships as unimportant were more satisfied with their lives than single young adults who were less dismissive of romantic relationships" was stated in the article, "Are Single or Partnered People Happier?"

Comments

The article that you referenced was written by credible authors, but I would love to see more information from a study done specifically on this issue. The article that you used mentions a study done on the topic, and you could've used more of that to back up your factcheck.

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I think that it is difficult to quantify happiness, but the article you linked explicitly describes a study done to back the original claim and I think that Psychology Today is a credible source. A secondary study that agrees with the claim may also be helpful but regardless it is hard to accurately reach a conclusion that addresses the claim in a binary manner.

Answer 10

Buzzfeed news claims that people who are single are happier and live more authentic lives. Personally, I am skeptical of this claim right off the bat just because I feel like relationships are personal and this is a broad statement. Even with the statistics I feel like that topic is very opinion based and can be biased based off each individuals experience. When looking this statement up no other news sources credit it and buzzfeed technically is not a reliable news source to begin with. The title on this factcheck is slightly different from the articles title and has just a brief explanation of what is written so there is very minor details. Overall, I personally think this is biased and needs more evidence to back it up. 

Comments

Your approach to this fact check was good. By questioning the source, looking for other evidence, and pointing out potential bias, you showed great critical thinking in your fact-check process.

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This approach adds up with all of the research I have done on this topic, but I am curious as to what sources you used to find a response to this claim. Also you stated, "buzzfeed technically is not a reliable news source..." Where did you find this information that Buzzfeed is not credible?

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This claim cannot be true or false. Putting aside the debatable authenticity of Buzzfeed as a news source, the claim that this article makes that single people are happier is not directly supported with any concrete evidence, but instead with examples and opinions. The article lacks a separation of personal opinion and research backed conclusions, especially considering that happiness in any situation is purely subjective. A simple google search reveals that plenty of people in relationships are happy with their situations. A study from the National Library of Medicine, a verified government website, reports that, “Partnered vs. unpartnered comparison studies find that, on average, singles are significantly less happy than those in long-term relationships…”            
While the notion of “happy vs unhappy” might generally be an oversimplification, it's reasonable to say that it's not factually proven that people are happier single. The studies and “shows” that the author references as sources for their argument are unnamed. The data provided is about divorce rates, which isn't enough to back up their article.