The first time I went to a ballet alone, I worried I’d remember the aloneness of the outing more than the performance itself. But I wanted to try it, my desire to see the show outweighing the nervousness of being new to a city and not knowing who to invite. I had lived alone before, and was comfortable doing things independently. But going to the performance alone had all the intention and eagerness of making plans. It just happened to be with myself.

That evening, I went into the theater with a single ticket and emerged with a new love: the solo outing.

Nearly a decade later, I still relish buying whatever ticket to a performance I can, stopping for french fries on the way back, and feeling as though I’d stepped into an evening created just for me. I discovered then what many have known all along: There can be something delightful about making plans to do an activity you enjoy alone.

Research suggests there’s something to that. Marketing professors Rebecca K. Ratner and Rebecca W. Hamilton found that people often skip “fun” activities (like seeing a movie, going to a museum, or eating at a restaurant) if they don’t have company. Participants in their research worried about how they would be perceived and consistently underestimated how much they would enjoy the experience solo.

Sometimes, going alone to what’s considered a group activity can create self-consciousness, Thuy-vy T. Nguyen, principal investigator of the Solitude Lab and who also has a Youtube series, Solitude Explained, told me. That feeling, she notes, often........

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