'Solitude has become a notable, and worrisome, trend of our times'

Collage illustration of a man standing alone at the top of a rock overlooking the water

'The time Americans spend alone has increased — especially for people younger than 30'

(Image credit: We Are / Getty Images)

published 23 December 2024

'Our relationships with friends are as important as those with family'

Youyou Zhou at The Washington Post

Recent data "shows that people of all age groups are spending far less time with friends than they did 20 years ago," says Youyou Zhou. We are "spending more time by ourselves, probably with our phones or in front of screens." The "most sustainable way to increase our time with friends," Zhou adds, is "not to create new or exciting adventures," but rather to "integrate friends into ordinary activities, such as sharing meals, watching films at home and grocery shopping."

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Anya Jaremko-Greenwold has worked as a story editor at The Week since 2024. She previously worked at FLOOD Magazine, Woman's World, First for Women, DGO Magazine and BOMB Magazine. Anya's culture writing has appeared in The Atlantic, Jezebel, Vice and the Los Angeles Review of Books, among others.