You don’t need to use your screens to end the global friendship recession
The phone is out of sight: A case study of a London café, Australia, and the Netherlands to raise awareness of real-world interaction
The growing demand for real-world interaction is the result of societal challenges such as the loneliness epidemic and the increased awareness of the adverse effects of too much screen time. Eighty percent of young people report feeling lonely, with 22 percent reporting no friends at all, according to recent research by Gallup. Zero. In terms of having friends, 12 percent of adults said they hadn’t had any in the last 30 years. There is a cry of loneliness in these statistics. People don’t just want followers anymore; they want real friendships.
We are trying to get things that knit us together back into local life. According to new research in the UK from the National Lottery Community Fund, half of UK adults intend to participate in local volunteering activities, both formally and informally in 2024. Over 70 percent say it’s important to them to feel part of their local community.
Meetup, the global platform that enables over 60 million people to use the internet to get off the internet and meet up in the real world, had a 19 percent rise in registrations in 2023. The latest Meetup Measurement Report showed that the number one reason people use the platform is to find meaningful connections in person, a 50 percent rise over previous years. The most popular search term for events is “ Friends” and the book club is back in the top 10.
The US based company has formed partnerships with comedy clubs, arenas, clubs and schools to organize phone-free events. Jack White, Bob Dylan, Garth Brooks, John Mayer, Madonna, and Adele have all implemented cell phone bans at their concerts so they could stop looking out at a sea of blinking smartphones, and to help the audience to connect by disconnecting.
In a cozy café in Amsterdam, with plush sofas and warm lighting, a group of people sit around talking, laughing, and playing board games. There is something missing. The phone is out of sight. It’s one of a regular series of community events held by the burgeoning Offline Club, where members pay around $8.00 to leave their phone in a lock box at the door and spend the next few hours unplugged. Demand is growing rapidly. The global movement of what started out in the UK is quickly becoming a global phenomenon, with regular events hosted in cafés, churches, and town halls selling out quickly in the UK, Denmark, and the Netherlands.
Intersxtn Surf, a Surf Club, and the Foundation for Social Connection: An Emotionally-Embedded Approach to the Problem of Social Isolation
But the emotional risk was worth it, she says. The surf group was a tonic. She felt seen by the other people in it. Just the fact that the instructors remembered her name felt profound and meaningful.
Mendez participated in one such club, called Intersxtn Surf — a group for women of color who surf together. “I was not calm the first time,” says Mendez.
Forty groups were invested $1 million this year by Hinge in various cities, including Atlanta, New York and Los Angeles. An art collective, a filmmaking club and a group that gathers to read are on the list.
The two organizations collaborated on an effort to connect people from all walks of life. The initiative is a nod to the surgeon general’s suggestion that one needs to spend time with friends. Racoosin says it’s impossible to plan for a return to a society with people who aren’t absorbed in their phones. The difference between young people and older people is caused by even a small amount of time spent in real life.
They wanted to work with the Foundation for Social Connection, a research and policy group that addresses social isolation. This demographic was being studied by the group. “We were seeing the reduction of things like social groups, clubs, engagement in clubs, third spaces for people to gather,” says Jillian Racoosin, executive director of the foundation.
The concern of Hinge is more than just altruistic. The company had come to understand from their users that people are more successful at dating when they have other, meaningful relationships in their life. Those who don’t have strong social circles, Penny says, end up bringing long checklists of needs to a potential partner. It can be too much for a relationship to bear.
When the surgeon general issued a 2023 warning on the epidemic of loneliness and social isolation, one fact stood out: People between the ages of 15-24 spend 70% less time in person with friends than those of the same age did in 2003. There are over one thousand fewer hours per year.
As a child, Genesy Mendez struggled with anxiety and lacked confidence when it came to socializing. The pandemic compounded things, and the 29-year-old elementary school teacher says she felt out of practice around making friends.
She credits the surfing group with helping to make new friends. She spends time with her friends outside. She started running after her success and ended up meeting a man not a surfer.
Source: How to solve the Gen Z social isolation problem? She tried surfing and it worked
One More Hour: Connecting Generation Z with Living on a Line in an Inclusive, Non-Gamma-Network World
It’s not certain how much of the efforts will pay off. More members of Generation Z than they can reach. One More Hour is an attempt to surface the lessons learned from a problem that is unique to this younger generation.
According to a survey done by Hinge, the biggest challenges of engaging in groups like these are. Cost and time were both issues, but Penny says the biggest concern was around the emotional barriers — questions like ‘What if I don’t fit in?’ ‘ What if I don’t find what I’m looking for?’ The skills required for in-person socializing, says Penny, are different than those people need to engage online, and this generation is simply out of shape. They just need to build their muscles.
