Determinants of Happiness in Young Adults: A Focus on Single People in Their 20s

The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors affecting happiness among unmarried young adults in their 20s, categorized into personal and social dimensions. The study utilized data from the National Assembly Future Research Center's 2022 Happiness Survey of Koreans, and 1,957 unmarried people in their 20s who participated in the survey and answered the questions in good faith were analyzed. The results showed that among the individual-level factors affecting the happiness of unmarried young adults in their 20s, the proportion of time spent alone on weekends, subjective health status, anxiety/anxiety experience, and depression/hopelessness experience had an impact on happiness. In other words, the lower the proportion of time spent alone on weekends, the lower the anxiety/anxiety and depression/hopelessness experience, the happier the young adults were. Next, among the social dimensions of happiness, the higher the perception of social equality, satisfaction with family life, satisfaction with interpersonal relationships, satisfaction with neighborhood environment, and trust in neighbors, the happier the unmarried young adults in their 20s. Based on these findings, intervention measures to promote the happiness of unmarried young adults in their 20s are suggested, as well as a discussion on further research.