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Any discussion of 'social recession' has to include something about the dwindling amount of free time an individual has to actually do things unrelated to basic

by rchaud 2y ago

Any discussion of 'social recession' has to include something about the dwindling amount of free time an individual has to actually do things unrelated to basic survival (work, school, groceries, cooking, transportation time). That's just scratching the surface. After all that, there's the decline and disappearance of third places, the hollow mirage of dating apps and the exorbitant cost of social activities (gyms, bowling, camping, even going for a coffee/drink etc.) which are now marketed as "lifestyle activities" with the corresponding markup.

aprilthird2021 2y ago
But don't we see the rise of things like Twitch streaming where people watch other people play games for hours? Longer and longer gameplay experiences are becoming more common. And I do think it's people with higher incomes who have shrinking and shrinking social circles. I do think it's primarily a reaction to our current internet and smartphones, the social contracts which broke during COVID, etc. Many many many cities and countries have complained about the exorbitant cost of everything for centuries, but we have not seen loneliness like this before, imo.
- rchaud 2y ago
  The article is referring to adults. I don't know that the % of grown adults watching Twitch all day is significant. I would say the loneliness issue here is more related to the fact that it's not easy to live close to friends, and neighbourhoods for the most part aren't designed for meeting new people.
bumby 2y ago
I think what you're referencing is just a change in social norms. The lowest rate (according to BLS data) is 35-44 year olds and they are still spending > 2 hours per day just watching TV. In an era where groceries can get delivered and there are many more remote work/school options, I think people may have more time than they think but it gets fractured across too many activities and just falls through the cracks due to too many pulls on our attention.
- rchaud 2y ago
  People watch TV while cooking and cleaning, responding to emails etc. I don't know anyone who is "watching" watching TV anymore.
  - bumby 2y ago
    So what do you think has changed that our predecessors didn't have to deal with? I tend to think it's our expectations. An analogy is cars. The cost of a car has gone up considerably and I believe the average car costs more than the average annual salary. But most of this is caused by the increased in what I would consider non-essential tech: heated power seats, navigation, etc. If you wanted to get a manual transmission/windows hatchback, they are remarkably affordable by comparison. But people don't want that as a general rule, even though that was the norm decades ago.

by rchaud 2y ago

aprilthird2021 2y ago

But don't we see the rise of things like Twitch streaming where people watch other people play games for hours? Longer and longer gameplay experiences are becoming more common. And I do think it's people with higher incomes who have shrinking and shrinking social circles. I do think it's primarily a reaction to our current internet and smartphones, the social contracts which broke during COVID, etc. Many many many cities and countries have complained about the exorbitant cost of everything for centuries, but we have not seen loneliness like this before, imo.

rchaud 2y ago
The article is referring to adults. I don't know that the % of grown adults watching Twitch all day is significant. I would say the loneliness issue here is more related to the fact that it's not easy to live close to friends, and neighbourhoods for the most part aren't designed for meeting new people.

bumby 2y ago

I think what you're referencing is just a change in social norms. The lowest rate (according to BLS data) is 35-44 year olds and they are still spending > 2 hours per day just watching TV. In an era where groceries can get delivered and there are many more remote work/school options, I think people may have more time than they think but it gets fractured across too many activities and just falls through the cracks due to too many pulls on our attention.

rchaud 2y ago
People watch TV while cooking and cleaning, responding to emails etc. I don't know anyone who is "watching" watching TV anymore.
- bumby 2y ago
  So what do you think has changed that our predecessors didn't have to deal with? I tend to think it's our expectations. An analogy is cars. The cost of a car has gone up considerably and I believe the average car costs more than the average annual salary. But most of this is caused by the increased in what I would consider non-essential tech: heated power seats, navigation, etc. If you wanted to get a manual transmission/windows hatchback, they are remarkably affordable by comparison. But people don't want that as a general rule, even though that was the norm decades ago.