If you’re on social media, you’ve probably heard someone being called a “simp.” It’s generally used as an insult, directed at a guy who showers a crush with gifts, compliments, and attention without his feelings being reciprocated. Researchers Daniel Ho, Kenneth Tan, Norman P. Li and Lester Sim at Singapore Management University published a study titled, ‘The (Simp)le Truth About Excessive and Obsessive Romantic Behaviors in Men,’ in the Journal of Personality that suggests there may be a real psychological pattern behind this behavior and it has less to do with being "whipped" and more to do with a fear a lot of people don't like to admit to: fear of ending up alone.
How researchers figured out what a "simp" actually is
The team conducted three studies involving a total of 1,199 participants. In the first study, 116 people were asked to list freely traits and behaviors they associated with “simping.” Researchers then compiled those responses to create a list of 11 candidate behaviors, and had a separate group of 299 participants rate how well each one fit the concept. Using a statistical technique called principal components analysis, they reduced it to seven core behaviors that fell into two categories: obsessive tendencies, like idolizing a partner or being unable to let go even without reciprocation, and excessive tendencies, such as overspending, over-flattering, and showing disproportionate affection. Together, these seven items accounted for approximately 58% of the variance in how people describe simping.
The fear that predicted it best
In the second study, 200 men (aged 18–72) were surveyed about their own self-reported simping behaviors and traits such as mate value, physical attractiveness, social status, social dominance, and fear of being single. The results were fairly straightforward: fear of being single emerged as the strongest predictor of simping behavior, even when accounting for personality traits and relationship satisfaction. The things you’d expect to matter most, attractiveness, income prospects, and social status, weren’t strong predictors of who simped and who didn’t.
