For years, loneliness has often been pictured the same way: an older person sitting alone, far removed from friends, family, or community. A global survey suggests that picture may not tell the whole story.
The Meta-Gallup Global State of Social Connections survey, conducted across 142 countries and areas and published in 2023, found that nearly one in four people worldwide reported feeling very or fairly lonely. But the group most likely to say they felt lonely was not older adults.
