We are Less Connected to our Neighbors - Rob Horowitz

We are Less Connected to our Neighbors - Rob Horowitz

In line with other trends in our society that contribute to pervasive isolation and loneliness, Americans have far fewer social interactions with their neighbors today than a decade or so ago.  

 

Only 4-in-10 (40%) Americans today say they talk with their neighbors at least a few times a week, as compared to the nearly 6-in-10 (59%) who did so in 2012, according to a new Survey Center on American Life report.  Nearly 1-in-5 (17%) Americans say that they do not talk to their neighbors at all.

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This substantial fraying of connections to our neighbors is particularly pronounced among younger Americans and those without a college degree.  “Only one in four young adults now report regularly engaging with their neighbors, but in 2012, more than half (51 percent) of young adults said they conversed with neighbors a few times a week or more,” documented the Survey Center. Along the same lines, less than half (46%) of those without a college degree say that  "they spent an evening with someone in their neighborhood at least once in the past year,” while nearly 6-in-10 (58%) college graduates say they did so.

 

One reason for the growing class divide in neighborhood bonds is that college graduates by and large live in communities with more “third places,” including “restaurants, gyms and fitness centers, public parks, libraries, and community centers,” than do those without a college education. “Access to places that facilitate neighborly interactions substantially affects how often Americans talk to their neighbors and how they feel about their community overall.” reports the Survey Center.”  "Third places" connect us to our neighbors and promote a sense of belonging to a community.

 

Across the board, however, the belief in the importance of neighbors lending each other a helping hand, perhaps best exemplified in our history by a barn raising--where people pitched in to build a barn for one of their neighbors-- is fading. Given a choice between defining a good neighbor as “trying to help without having to be asked” or “not getting too involved in your neighbors’ personal affairs,” 2-out-of-3 Americans today essentially say minding your own business better fits.  

 

This retreat from engaging with the people that live near us to a reliance on often siloed social media and online activity for connection and identity has serious negative impacts. It is a prime contributor, for instance, to our society’s epidemic level of loneliness.  Research shows that across a range of measures, including quality of life, level of crime, and even life expectancy, connected neighborhoods produce meaningful improvements.