HealthThe Guardian‘There’s a lot of silence’: have we created a new ‘Lonely Generation’?
A new book and WHO research confirm young people aged 13-29 are the loneliest generation on record, with up to 21% reporting chronic loneliness.
Learning to be one human among many has always been a little lonely and discombobulating. But young people around the world are lonelier than ever. Why?
Research from the WHO and multiple country studies shows young people aged 13-29 are experiencing loneliness at higher rates than any other age group.
Between 17 and 21% of young people globally report feeling lonely, and youth loneliness increased across many countries between 2002 and 2022, the studies found.
Clinical psychologist Dr Michelle Lim argues in her new book that dramatic changes to childhood over recent decades are a key driver of the trend.
The WHO 2025 Social Connection Commission report found 17-21% of 13-29 year-olds feel lonely, so if you have a young person in your life, a regular check-in could matter more than you think.
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