Resources

Brookings fellow Richard Reeves on why Americans without friends have increased 250% and why the ideal number of close friends is around three or four.

The landmark survey that put numbers to the friendship recession. Men with zero close friends jumped from 3% to 15% since 1990.

The original analysis from the Survey Center director. Men have smaller circles and report being less emotionally connected to the friends they do have.

Who are the loneliest people in America? The demographics and data behind loneliness may not be what you’d expect.

How education levels affect your ability to connect. People have fewer friends than previous generations across different countries.

Despite being materially better off than ever, Americans face a collapse in friendship, social clubs, community groups, and family formation.

An accessible primer on the friendship recession with key stats from the American Perspectives Survey.

The decline goes beyond friendship: close relationships, trust, labor participation, and community involvement are all dropping.

COVID accelerated a trend that had been building for a decade. 90% of CNN poll respondents felt the country was in a mental health crisis.

15% of men say they have no close friends at all. Men are less likely than women to rely on friends for emotional support.

20% of single men now say they have no close friends. PBS traveled to Phoenix to explore male loneliness firsthand.

Men have fewer close friends than women, and men today have fewer than men 30 years ago. An in-depth look at the epidemic.

Anthropologist Robin Dunbar on how men’s friendships are “clubby” and activity-based, while women’s are personal and dyadic.

Longer working hours, more job-switching, and socialization that teaches boys to hide vulnerability are all contributing factors.

Experts say men should explore every outlet for connection: running groups, trivia teams, or whatever gets them face-to-face.

“Life is pretty darn good. But something’s missing: I could really use a Great Male Friend.” One man’s honest quest.

A conversation with Mark Greene of Remaking Manhood about the state of men and the male friendship recession.

Men tend to be the loneliest but have the hardest time admitting it. How some men are forging new friendships.

Men with six or more close friends fell from 55% to 27% since 1990. Men without any close friends jumped from 3% to 15%.

Two psychologists who specialize in men’s friendships, plus two best friends of 30 years on keeping the connection alive.

Declining religious involvement, lower marriage rates, and workplace changes are creating a surge of disconnection.

Single men are hit hardest. 20% of men not in a relationship report having no close friends at all.

Nearly one in six men don’t have a single close friend. The number with at least six plummeted from 55% to 27%.

Only 27% of men in 2021 said they had at least six close friends, down from 55% in 1990. The health impacts are significant.

A wife’s perspective on the male friendship recession. Her husband can count his friends on one hand and barely sees them.

Without golf, one writer doubts his male friendships would exist. Activities like sports are lifelines for male connection.

Almost half of women share feelings with friends, but that drops to less than a third for men. A therapist explains how men can build stronger bonds.

41% of women receive emotional support from friends vs. 21% of men. No generational differences. All men, every age, are equally unlikely to share feelings with friends.

He planned to propose but realized he had no one to call as best man. An honest look at men’s friendship problems and solutions.

It takes 40-60 hours together to become casual friends. For older adults, that time is harder to find. A trip that proved it’s still possible.

Phil Clarke, in his early 70s, set a goal to make new friends. How community organizations are helping people reconnect.

The pandemic and social media made people “rusty” at making friends. Practical ways to forge new connections.

As a 30-something, making new friends feels almost foreign. Making plans is like scheduling a dental appointment six months out.

Loneliness was rising before the pandemic. 20% of younger adults report being lonely. What UW Medicine says about coping.

Drinking builds social bonds. But what happens when you stop relying on alcohol to make and maintain connections?

When was the last time you had a real heart-to-heart conversation? If you can’t remember, you may have been hit by the friendship recession.

A political journalist realizes he’d become the friendless dad he swore he’d never be. Plenty of Twitter followers, very few real friends.

Harvard researcher Rick Weissbourd wanted to get under the hood of loneliness: what it feels like, what causes it, and why it’s so persistent.

The friendship recession is a solvable problem. It doesn’t require a new government agency or tax dollars. But it does require action.

High-quality friendships produce a health effect comparable to eating a Mediterranean diet. But they have to be in person.

The average 30-year-old shed 4.5 friends since the pandemic started. 18-24 year olds are now more likely to have no close friends than 75-year-olds.

Lacking social connection increases premature death risk as much as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. The Surgeon General’s report explained.

Despite social media and the language of connection, Americans struggle to build friendships. The problem has grown since Bowling Alone was published 25 years ago.

Although half of Americans lost touch with a friend during the pandemic, nearly as many made a new one. The recession isn’t just COVID’s fault.

Aristotle’s teaching on friendship and what it can tell us about building new connections today.

Even before the pandemic, Australians were declining in organized sport, volunteering, religious services, and community organizations.

“I’m thirsty for friends. It’s embarrassing.” An honest essay about courting acquaintances as an adult.

A son remembers his dad who always made time for his countless close friendships, even in the midst of a busy life.

Men face a crisis of loneliness. Rethinking the shape and structure of their friendships can help.

The decline in friendships due to death, moving, job transfers, and the reality of getting older.

If you don’t like your partner, you can’t love them through the hard times. Friendship is the foundation of every relationship.

A writer who has covered friendships extensively shares his take on why the problem keeps growing.

A college student reflects on how COVID made it tempting to choose alone time over going out with friends.

Everything is more expensive, competitive, and demanding. Friendship has become another job. People lack the energy.

18-24 year olds are now more likely to have no close friends than those aged 75+. The UK data mirrors the American trends.

People with stronger social relationships have 50% lower mortality risk. The friendship pool is running dry.

The Zerodha billionaire says he has five friends he’d “do all for” and worries about the world facing a friendship recession.

Technology replaced face-to-face interactions. Far from being social, digital communication has added more distance between us.

We’re more connected than ever through screens. Yet people of all ages say they’re lonelier than ever.

The term entered use in 2021 when researchers noticed declining social circles. The trend spans countries and age groups.

With unlimited access to people at our fingertips, we might think connection is easy. Surveys show otherwise.