Above The Noise | Is Gen Z the Loneliest Generation? @AboveTheNoise | Uploaded 2 years ago | Updated 1 hour ago
Why is each generation lonelier than the one that came before it?
Also, watch PBS Vitals episode "Are We In a Loneliness Epidemic?" youtu.be/KFG7fWixrxk
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And follow us on Instagram and Twitter!
instagram.com/abovethenoisepbs
twitter.com/ATN_PBS
Learn more about the expert featured in our video, Justin Puder
amoderntherapist.com
instagram.com/amoderntherapist
tiktok.com/@amoderntherapist?lang=en
**What’s the psychology behind loneliness?**
The same neural networks that fire when you are in physical pain fire when you're lonely. So loneliness IS painful. There’s an evolutionary reason behind this. For thousands of years, humans lived the hunter-gatherer lifestyle in small groups. Cooperation and communication were crucial to staying alive. The feeling of loneliness is a type of social pain. It’s the brain’s warning system telling you, “Bruh! Get back with your tribe!”
**Why is Gen Z considered the loneliest generation?**
For Gen Z, there was a big loneliness spike between 2012 and 2018. During that time period, almost twice as many high school students worldwide reported feeling lonely compared to the previous decade. That’s a pretty massive increase in a short period of time. A leading theory to explain this is that 2012 was the first year when more than 50 percent of Americans had access to a smartphone. And social media use really hit critical mass.
**How does social media affect relationships?**
So you had this perfect storm of 2 new, huge cultural things that constantly demanded our attention 24-7. And it spread all over the globe. People -- especially young people -- started spending less time interacting in person and MORE time using digital media. And a lot of times, that doesn’t satisfy the in-person connections that our brains are hungry for.
**How do you deal with loneliness and fight against it?**
Trying to reach out to people after a bout of loneliness can be tough. It can bring on feelings of anxiety and depression because stepping out of your comfort zone can feel threatening. But it’s important to fight through it. Working on the connections we already have with the people around us is important. Connecting with these people in a real, authentic way is KEY to getting out of the loneliness trap. And sometimes, that requires us to connect with new people. People outside our “tribe”. Like volunteering somewhere, or picking up a new sport, or starting a new hobby -- anything that can help us connect with people.
SOURCES
The Loneliness Pandemic (Harvard Magazine)
harvardmagazine.com/2021/01/feature-the-loneliness-pandemic
Teens have less face time with their friends – and are lonelier than ever (The Conversation)
theconversation.com/teens-have-less-face-time-with-their-friends-and-are-lonelier-than-ever-113240
Toward a Neurology of Loneliness (Psychological Bulletin)
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5130107/pdf/nihms826289.pdf
Teens around the world are lonelier than a decade ago (Washington Post)
washingtonpost.com/local/social-issues/teens-loneliness-smart-phones/2021/07/20/cde8c866-e84e-11eb-8950-d73b3e93ff7f_story.html
Worldwide increases in adolescent loneliness (Journal of Adolescence)
sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140197121000853
Digital natives’ coping with loneliness: Facebook or face-to-face? (Information & Management)
sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378720618300399?via%3Dihub
Cigna U.S. Loneliness Index
cigna.com/static/www-cigna-com/docs/about-us/newsroom/studies-and-reports/combatting-loneliness/loneliness-survey-2018-full-report.pdf
Loneliness And The Workplace (Cigna)
cigna.com/static/www-cigna-com/docs/about-us/newsroom/studies-and-reports/combatting-loneliness/cigna-2020-loneliness-report.pdf
About KQED
KQED serves the people of Northern California with a public-supported alternative to commercial media. An NPR and PBS member station based in San Francisco, KQED is home to one of the most listened-to public radio stations in the nation, one of the highest-rated public television services, and an award-winning education program helping students and educators thrive in 21st-century classrooms. A trusted news source, leader, and innovator in interactive technology, KQED takes people of all ages on journeys of exploration — exposing them to new people, places, and ideas.
CHAPTERS
0:00 A Loneliness Epidemic
1:08 Gen Z Is The Loneliest Generation
4:27 Why Is Gen Z So Lonely?
8:02 The Smartphone Theory
11:22 How Do You Deal With Loneliness?
#lonely #mentalhealth #psychology
Why is each generation lonelier than the one that came before it?
Also, watch PBS Vitals episode "Are We In a Loneliness Epidemic?" youtu.be/KFG7fWixrxk
SUBSCRIBE so you never miss a video!
bit.ly/3tNKzhV
And follow us on Instagram and Twitter!
instagram.com/abovethenoisepbs
twitter.com/ATN_PBS
Learn more about the expert featured in our video, Justin Puder
amoderntherapist.com
instagram.com/amoderntherapist
tiktok.com/@amoderntherapist?lang=en
**What’s the psychology behind loneliness?**
The same neural networks that fire when you are in physical pain fire when you're lonely. So loneliness IS painful. There’s an evolutionary reason behind this. For thousands of years, humans lived the hunter-gatherer lifestyle in small groups. Cooperation and communication were crucial to staying alive. The feeling of loneliness is a type of social pain. It’s the brain’s warning system telling you, “Bruh! Get back with your tribe!”
**Why is Gen Z considered the loneliest generation?**
For Gen Z, there was a big loneliness spike between 2012 and 2018. During that time period, almost twice as many high school students worldwide reported feeling lonely compared to the previous decade. That’s a pretty massive increase in a short period of time. A leading theory to explain this is that 2012 was the first year when more than 50 percent of Americans had access to a smartphone. And social media use really hit critical mass.
**How does social media affect relationships?**
So you had this perfect storm of 2 new, huge cultural things that constantly demanded our attention 24-7. And it spread all over the globe. People -- especially young people -- started spending less time interacting in person and MORE time using digital media. And a lot of times, that doesn’t satisfy the in-person connections that our brains are hungry for.
**How do you deal with loneliness and fight against it?**
Trying to reach out to people after a bout of loneliness can be tough. It can bring on feelings of anxiety and depression because stepping out of your comfort zone can feel threatening. But it’s important to fight through it. Working on the connections we already have with the people around us is important. Connecting with these people in a real, authentic way is KEY to getting out of the loneliness trap. And sometimes, that requires us to connect with new people. People outside our “tribe”. Like volunteering somewhere, or picking up a new sport, or starting a new hobby -- anything that can help us connect with people.
SOURCES
The Loneliness Pandemic (Harvard Magazine)
harvardmagazine.com/2021/01/feature-the-loneliness-pandemic
Teens have less face time with their friends – and are lonelier than ever (The Conversation)
theconversation.com/teens-have-less-face-time-with-their-friends-and-are-lonelier-than-ever-113240
Toward a Neurology of Loneliness (Psychological Bulletin)
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5130107/pdf/nihms826289.pdf
Teens around the world are lonelier than a decade ago (Washington Post)
washingtonpost.com/local/social-issues/teens-loneliness-smart-phones/2021/07/20/cde8c866-e84e-11eb-8950-d73b3e93ff7f_story.html
Worldwide increases in adolescent loneliness (Journal of Adolescence)
sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140197121000853
Digital natives’ coping with loneliness: Facebook or face-to-face? (Information & Management)
sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378720618300399?via%3Dihub
Cigna U.S. Loneliness Index
cigna.com/static/www-cigna-com/docs/about-us/newsroom/studies-and-reports/combatting-loneliness/loneliness-survey-2018-full-report.pdf
Loneliness And The Workplace (Cigna)
cigna.com/static/www-cigna-com/docs/about-us/newsroom/studies-and-reports/combatting-loneliness/cigna-2020-loneliness-report.pdf
About KQED
KQED serves the people of Northern California with a public-supported alternative to commercial media. An NPR and PBS member station based in San Francisco, KQED is home to one of the most listened-to public radio stations in the nation, one of the highest-rated public television services, and an award-winning education program helping students and educators thrive in 21st-century classrooms. A trusted news source, leader, and innovator in interactive technology, KQED takes people of all ages on journeys of exploration — exposing them to new people, places, and ideas.
CHAPTERS
0:00 A Loneliness Epidemic
1:08 Gen Z Is The Loneliest Generation
4:27 Why Is Gen Z So Lonely?
8:02 The Smartphone Theory
11:22 How Do You Deal With Loneliness?
#lonely #mentalhealth #psychology
