On the up side: people who are more separate, isolated, lonely, without being to far in to the pathological extremes, tend to buy more things, which is good for

On the up side: people who are more separate, isolated, lonely, without being to far in to the pathological extremes, tend to buy more things, which is good for The Economy. I would expect them to buy more functionally useful goods, like televisions, but fewer positional goods, like houses with lawns. Since the price of manufactured goods is constantly being brought down by markets, but positional goods by definition cannot be, I would expect the socially connected to spend more. They have to drink in bars, not at home; they have to buy a car that impresses, not one that drives; they have to buy a home to entertain in, not a shipping container.