Youth loneliness rising
Coverage reports Gen Z as the loneliest generation, citing social‑survey evidence that younger and poorer people socialize less and report fewer friends than a decade ago. (twincities.com) Similar research in Portugal finds loneliness increased among young people there as well. (theportugalnews.com)
Young adults are reporting weaker social lives on both sides of the Atlantic, with newer surveys finding fewer friends, less time together, and more loneliness. (theportugalnews.com) (worldhappiness.report) In Portugal, an ISCTE study released on April 11 compared 2025 with 2015 and found “a clear reduction” in close friends, more loneliness, and lower social integration among adults ages 18 to 64. The study said younger and lower-income people showed the steepest declines. (theportugalnews.com) The U.S. data point in the same direction. The Survey Center on American Life said in its May 2021 American Perspectives Survey that Americans reported fewer close friendships than in the past, talked to friends less often, and relied on friends less for personal support. (americansurveycenter.org) A newer Harvard Youth Poll, released April 23, 2025, found fewer than half of Americans ages 18 to 29 felt a sense of community anywhere, and only 17% said they felt deeply connected to at least one community. The poll surveyed 2,096 young Americans from March 14 to March 25, 2025. (iop.harvard.edu) Global data show the pattern is not limited to one country. The World Happiness Report 2025 said 19% of young adults worldwide reported in 2023 that they had no one they could count on for social support, up 39% from 2006. (worldhappiness.report) Researchers are describing a shift from temporary pandemic isolation to a broader change in how friendship works. The Survey Center on American Life pointed to later marriage, higher geographic mobility, more time spent parenting, and longer work hours as forces that can crowd out friendships. (americansurveycenter.org) The Portugal study added a class dimension. It said poorer people had reduced their number of friends more sharply, spent less time with others, and felt lonelier over the last decade than higher-income groups. (theportugalnews.com) The Harvard poll tied social strain to money strain. More than 4 in 10 Americans under 30 said they were “barely getting by” financially, while just 16% said they were doing well or very well. (iop.harvard.edu) Not every measure says the same thing for every group. A Pew Research Center survey published January 16, 2025 found about 16% of Americans said they felt lonely or isolated all or most of the time, with roughly equal shares of men and women, even as men reported turning to their networks less often for emotional support. (pewresearch.org) Researchers are also testing what helps. The World Happiness Report chapter said early friendships in college can raise the odds of later flourishing, and the Portugal study called for more free public spaces where people can meet without having to spend money. (worldhappiness.report) (theportugalnews.com) The through line in these studies is concrete: younger adults are not just saying they feel lonely more often; they are also reporting fewer close ties and fewer places where connection feels easy. (worldhappiness.report) (iop.harvard.edu)
