I wrote about the collapse of face-to-face socializing in in the 21st century. From 2003-2022, American adults reduced socializing by 30%. For teens, the decline was nearly 50%. There is no record of any period in history when ppl spent more time alone. theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/…
In the last few weeks, I've spent a lot of time with the American Time Use Survey to understand how socialization has declined and for whom it's fallen fastest. 5 points. 1) Socialization is falling—and loneliness rising—more for teens than other age groups (ht @jean_twenge)
@DKThomp I’m obsessed with this trend and have theorized that the next true “disruption” in tech is the one that leads towards more face-to-face irl social contact, reversing 20 years of decline. Tech that leads to less time alone would truly be revolutionary b/c today it seems impossible
Proof that people, whether sheeple or straights or whatever, want (need) to feel part of something bigger than themselves: family, nuclear family, gangs, sports, evangelicals, politics, etc... anything to fill the void in their soul. Social media tools have engendered an explosion in the number of "tools". Welcome to the communication era... the superficial comm era !
@DKThomp It’s displaced contexts but it is different whatworkswellbeing.org/resources/tren…
@DKThomp AI deepfakes will ironically fix this. Soon no one will trust a FaceTime or Zoom anymore. Physical presence will remain the only trustworthy communication.