How are Gen Z changing the way we socialise?
just the two of us
New research by Hinge, in partnership with FOOD and ON ROAD, has found that most young people prioritise one-on-one connection over everything else, suggesting that close friendships are an important part of combatting Gen Z loneliness.
Anyone who’s spent time in the advertising industry knows that marketers are forever yearning for an answer to the Gen Z loneliness epidemic.
How can brands reach young people who are routinely jaded, uninterested and seemingly determined to isolate themselves? Despite hundreds of different platforms and apps that allow us to connect with others, studies show that more Gen Zers than ever feel fundamentally lonely.
Spiralling living costs, increasingly busy and demanding jobs, as well as the pressure to maintain large groups of friends can leave us feeling emotionally burnt out. With so much of our time spent on others and simply trying to maintain our lives, it can be easy to reject plans and stay inside.
Many Gen Zers engage in ‘passive scrolling’ on their phones instead of meeting up with others which, while relieving in the short-term, can end up leaving them worse off. If this behaviour becomes common across weeks and months, it’s easy to drift and leave social obligations on the backburner.
So, what’s the solution? Is there a happy medium? How can young people care for themselves and avoid burnout while also seeing the people they care about?
New research by dating app platform Hinge suggests that one-on-one meetups are the best way to feel connected to those we love without getting bogged down in social performities or expectations. According to those interviewed, 78% said their most energising activity was a simple activity with another person.
Hinge suggests a few different shared activities that can bring friends together with specific experiences, rather than getting stuck in what it calls a ‘catchup loop.’ This might be eating food together, playing a game, reading a book at the same time, taking walks or creating art as a duo. The key is to do something that requires engagement in the present, rather than detailing the events of your lives separately.
‘Co-creating experiences moves the relationship from feeling like parallel timelines to something more integrated,’ said Moe Ari Brown, a licensed therapist who works at Hinge. ‘When we create memories, we are no longer just narrating our worlds while orbiting others; we essentially are inviting those worlds to merge in meaningful ways.’
What might this look like, you may be wondering?
Tons of Gen Zers seek meaningful connection through in-person activities like pottery, running, or book clubs, and are even opting for wholesome activities like these over pubs and clubs; they bring people together through interests or shared experiences and while they aren’t always one-on-one, they foster connection in much the same way as seeing one person at a time.
In fact, the uptake in running by young people has been significant and sizable over the past few years.
Exercise-sharing platforms like Strava are seeing growth year-on-year, with Gen Zers filling up running events faster than they can be put together. Exercise clubs and gym memberships are on the rise, with more of us wanting to engage in real world socialising than ever. Meeting others and reducing feelings of loneliness are just two of the many benefits these types of communities bring.
Gen Z’s focus on depth over breadth is changing the way companies consider their ability to foster connection, too.
Platforms like Hinge, Discord, and WhatsApp are all doing well with Gen Z as they prioritise closer groups rather than public posting and endless content feeds. In our influencer age, more young people are pivoting away from superficial, parasocial relationships and trying their best to connect with their real friends. Remember the explosion of BeReal? That was no coincidence.
Less disposable income also means fewer paid events, which is a headache for brands. Gen Z are socialising intentionally, setting clear digital boundaries, and understand the detrimental effects that passive scrolling can have, even if they aren’t able to resist it.
Companies who want to resonate with Gen Z and their relationships will need to acknowledge this balance and reflect their negative feelings toward too much screen time. We may not have the answer to loneliness, but it seems young people are beginning to equip themselves with certain patterns of behaviour to combat it at the very least.
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