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The first international report “Social Connections and Loneliness in OECD Countries“ was launched, providing a comprehensive comparative assessment of the state of social connections in OECD countries, based on high-quality and large official data sources, which makes it possible to compare both the quantity and quality of social connections between different population groups and, most importantly, monitors the evolution of these connections in the medium and short term.

The document that can be consulted here points to the fact that social relations are generally strong in OECD countries: more than two-thirds of respondents interacted with friends or family at least once a day during the previous week and 90% have someone they can count on in times of need.

However, 10% of people feel unsupported by others, 8% of respondents in 22 European OECD countries say they have no close friends, and 6% of respondents in 23 OECD countries have felt alone for most or all of the time in the past four weeks. Moreover, positive results in one area – such as frequent socialisation – do not necessarily translate into high-quality relationships, highlighting the importance of incorporating both the quantity and quality of social connections into intervention and monitoring efforts.

The findings show that: i) people are meeting in person less often than in the past, while self-reported feelings of connection have only recently shown signs of worsening in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic; (ii) men and young people — groups previously considered to be at lower risk — have suffered some of the largest deteriorations; iii) deprivations in social connection often overlap with socio-economic disadvantages, solitary life and old age; and (iv) the drivers of social connections are complex and cover socio-economic, environmental and structural factors. This report explores the social and digital infrastructure.