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"Loneliness epidemic" is a funny turn of phrase. I know it's common today to use the word "epidemic" as a hyperbolic way of referring to any phenomenon that se
by Gormo 2y ago
"Loneliness epidemic" is a funny turn of phrase.
I know it's common today to use the word "epidemic" as a hyperbolic way of referring to any phenomenon that seems to be increasing in occurrence, but its literal meaning refers to phenomena that propagate rapidly through networks of interaction between individuals.
So a literal interpretation of "loneliness epidemic" would describe a situation in which people are catching loneliness from their contact with each other.
- skyyler 2y agoI think "catching loneliness from their contact with each other" is a perfect way to describe how Facebook use seems to make humans feel.
- aaronbaugher 2y agoYes, people think they're socializing because it's "social media" and the little icons represent "friends" who "like" them, but there's no there there. It's like trying to live on zero-calorie foods; after a while you're starving even though your belly is always full.
- ryandrake 2y agoNot just Facebook, but all of Social Media, Online Gaming, Twitter/X, messaging apps, and Internet forums (even HN) are all zero-calorie online substitutes for real life. There's a reason "chronically online" and "touch grass" are sayings. EDIT: I'll also add that for myself, a lot of In Real Life events I used to host, like poker night and movie night, are slowly petering out and going away because people move away, or they aren't interested in coming, or they come but spend the whole time scrolling on their Instagram fantasy world. Yes, you can institute a no-phones rule but that just decreases attendance even more. People are more into their fantasy worlds than they are their actual (real life) friends.
- technothrasher 2y ago>its literal meaning refers to phenomena that propagate rapidly through networks of interaction between individuals. The actual literal meaning of epidemic is, "affecting a group of people" (epi = among/upon, dēmos = people/district). It is only when referring to disease that it take on an infectious connotation.
- Gormo 2y agoI suppose that's true if we look literally at the Greek roots. Perhaps I should have said that the traditional English meaning usually refers to propagation of contagious phenomena. Sort of how the literal meaning of "television" doesn't capture its specific meaning in modern usage, in that it doesn't generally refer to anything seen at a distance.
- yjftsjthsd-h 2y agoCuriously, https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/epidemic https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/epidemic only mentions "spreading" in the context of ideas. Although, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/epidemic https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/epidemic gives both equal weight.
- ViktorRay 2y agoLoneliness is indeed a contagious phenomenon. This has been proven in studies. It’s strange but it’s true.
- Gormo 2y agoIs it a contagious phenomenon, or is it just a situation where some people being lonely is highly correlated with other people being lonely? It makes intuitive sense that as more people are isolated, the pool of possible social interactions available to other people is proportionally reduced.
- PeterStuer 2y agoWould a lonely person not by definition have self quarantined?
- gyesxnuibh 2y agoWell you can talk to people every day and still be lonely. It's a bit too surface level to take it that literally.
- fodkodrasz 2y agoIt is in a sense, and I think it is highly related to the workforce mobility highly praised in the US, as people move after better opportunities their network degrades, but so does the network of their peers suffer their absence, so in a sense this is contagious. I think this effect is one of the significant cultural factors driving this phenomena, and this does also "contagious" for their family as well, eg. children are very badly effected by this.