what is "happiness"? It's another vague term that is so abstract as to barely mean anything.
does it mean we should be going around smiling all day long?
i'm not convinced that a long-term marriage is about happiness. there are bouts of good times, but also full of problems, and challenges, and responsibilities, things we would rather not do.
maybe it's mostly about sacrifice, devotion to the other person.
are single people happier? no, I don't consider myself happy on a regular basis being single for a while now.
I don't claim being single = happy and being married = unhappy
I don't have to deal with all the challenges of being married for a while now.
I do enjoy going to a tittie bar ocassionally without feeling like I'm cheating on someone .... but tittie bars are just titillating, they don't make me perpetually happy. happy is a strong word.
the pursuit of happiness is just that ... an endless pursuit ... which doesn't exist. nobody is "happy" all the time or most of the time. single or married.