Development and Validation of the Broadened Fear of Being Single (B-FOBS) Scale: A Brief Measure for Use Across Relationship Statuses

Fear of being single (FOBS) refers to concern, anxiety, or distress about being without a romantic partner. The legacy measure of FOBS (Spielmann et al., 2013) has limited temporal scope, embeds assumptions about antecedents within item content, and requires separate versions for single and partnered individuals. We therefore developed and validated the 8-item Broadened Fear of Being Single (B-FOBS) scale, an assumption-free measure that captures both present- and future-focused FOBS and functions equivalently across relationship statuses. Across five independent samples (total N = 2,607), an EFA sample (n = 498) supported a two-factor structure, which was confirmed via CFA in another sample (n = 702) with excellent fit and measurement invariance across age, gender, relationship status, and sexual orientation. We also found strong convergent and discriminant validity, including specificity to singlehood-relevant constructs beyond the legacy measure, and good 8-week test-retest reliability (n = 486). Demographic comparisons revealed that younger individuals reported higher future-focused FOBS, whereas partnered (vs. single) individuals reported higher present-focused FOBS. An additional sample (n = 665) linked B-FOBS to several theorized antecedents (e.g., singlehood stigma, peer influence, media exposure) and consequences (e.g., settling for less, self-sacrificing, and inauthenticity in dating). A final sample of recently single individuals (n = 256) showed that higher FOBS was associated with greater post-breakup difficulty. Findings support the B-FOBS as a psychometrically robust and inclusive measure for studying FOBS across diverse populations.