The flaw is that it's based on self-reporting. So, more people in the US/UK will self-identify as lonely, whereas in Japan, it might be kind of embarrassing to

The flaw is that it's based on self-reporting. So, more people in the US/UK will self-identify as lonely, whereas in Japan, it might be kind of embarrassing to admit to that, or people might not tend to think of themselves that way? Japan (at least in major cities) seems to have a culture of insane overtime that creates loneliness issues. No time for friends or dating. The US might be headed in the same direction because rents in some large cities are rising fast, and some people have no choice but to work multiple jobs to make ends meet. We're also living in a time where love relationships are seen as having an expiration date, as being disposable. The rise of Tinder, it seems like we're applying consumerism to relationships. We have a short attention span and we don't care for close connections. Just my opinion, but I don't think this is going to do good things for the world.