NBC News
Almost every American adult used to have close friends.
In 1990, the proportion of the population that said they did not have them was low and almost the same when measured by educational level: only 2% among those with university degrees and 3% among those who did not.
But a recent survey suggests that the share of people who say they have no close friends has risen overall, especially among those who did not graduate from college, creating something of a class divide in people’s level of social engagement and connection.
Nearly a quarter of American adults with a high school diploma or less said they had no close friends. The figure was even higher for black adults in that group: 35%.
Only 10% of those with a college degree said the same.
The findings come from a survey of about 6,600 adults conducted by the Survey Center on American Life, a nonprofit that researches how culture, politics and technology shape people’s lives.
“Our social fabric now appears to have two layers,” said Daniel Cox, director of the center and co-author of a report published this week summarizing the findings. “You have one (layer) for people with college educations that appears to be relatively intact, and another for those without college degrees that appears to be in tatters.”
Loneliness, an epidemic
The findings come amid a documented rise in social isolation across the country. About 30% of adults say they have felt lonely at least once a week over the past year, and 10% say they feel lonely every day, according to a January survey from the American Psychiatric Association.
The U.S. Surgeon General declared loneliness an epidemic last year, citing its links to heart disease, stroke, dementia and premature death. San Mateo County, California, which includes part of Silicon Valley, subsequently declared a public health emergency over high rates of loneliness among residents.
“There has been a significant decline and atrophy in American social connectedness,” said Cox, who is also a senior fellow for polling and public opinion at the conservative Washington-based think tank American Enterprise Institute, adding that while the pandemic helped shine a light on the problem, “this decline has been going on for decades.”
Cox offered a few ideas that might explain the trend. One is that being alone is less boring now, thanks to video games and streaming services. streamingmaking people less likely to join social groups or spend time with friends or family.
Another is that those without a college degree have fewer opportunities to participate in social activities, perhaps because their access to free public spaces is more limited or they do not have the time or money to frequent places like bars and restaurants.
The Cox survey found that college-educated adults were more likely to go to restaurants or coffee shops and engage in conversations with neighbors, compared with people without a college degree. They were also more likely to be members of a neighborhood association, sports league, or hobby group (such as a book club or regular poker game).
“We’ve given a lot of the responsibility for creating and maintaining friendships to individuals rather than institutions,” Cox said. “We’ve shifted all the work, all the effort, to individuals who now have to coordinate, organize and schedule their social engagements, rather than having them emerge organically from the things they’re already doing.”
The survey also found that people with a college degree were more likely to be part of a union or regularly attend church, two places that have historically provided opportunities for socializing for people with less formal education.
The survey even found an education gap when it comes to free public places like libraries and parks. Nearly 4 in 10 college-educated adults said they had visited a park or community garden at least once a month in the past year, compared with less than a quarter of those without a college education. And nearly half of college graduates said they had visited a library at least sometimes in the past year, compared with a quarter of adults with a high school diploma or less.
“Places that are legitimately free, like community centers and libraries, don’t have regular operating hours for a lot of people,” Cox said. “A lot of those places are closed at night, and then there just aren’t enough of them to meet the need.”
Part of the problem may have to do with geography: A 2022 study found that neighborhoods with higher poverty rates have fewer public gathering spaces. And many communities don’t have the money to invest in their public spaces, Cox said.
With friends, but no time for them
Limited free time and poor access to transportation also likely play a role, said Adam Roth, an associate professor of sociology at Oklahoma State University who was not involved in the survey.
“If you live in the suburbs and you have to change buses or trains or get in your car and make that long trip, that’s going to be a prohibitive factor,” Roth said.
The story isn’t all bleak, though. A series of surveys from 2022 and 2023 found that while people in the U.S. wanted to be closer to their friends, fewer than 3% said they had no friends at all. The surveys looked at both close friendships and casual acquaintances.
“Our data is not really discouraging,” said Amanda Holmstrom, a communications professor at Michigan State University who conducted the research. “People have friends, but they don’t necessarily feel like they have time to take care of them.”
Casual friendships offer benefits, too, of course. Roth said people report better psychological well-being on days when they have more interactions with a wider variety of people, including those they barely know.
Social interactions in general help reduce or prevent symptoms of anxiety and depression. Face-to-face interactions and participation in community events have even been linked to lower levels of inflammation in the body.
“The bottom line is that all types of social interactions and relationships are important, particularly for health and well-being,” Roth said. “But the likelihood of experiencing certain types of social interactions depends, at least in part, on the communities in which we live.”
