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How We Live Together

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How Do We Want to Live?

Abstract

The industrialized nations of this world are particularly threatened by the modern epidemic of social isolation and loneliness. Loneliness increases our risk of depression and dementia, and it shortens our life expectancy. Loneliness is not a problem of the individual, which can therefore be solved by an individual intervention (e.g. a pharmaceutical), but one of social organization. Causes of the epidemic increase in loneliness include the rapid growth of technology and social media, globalization, and the polarization of societies. Technology and globalization have increased the quality of life worldwide to a significant degree, but at the same time they have changed social interaction and destroyed traditional social connections. This threat to our mental health must also be addressed.

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GrĂ¼nder, G. (2022). How We Live Together. In: How Do We Want to Live?. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-64225-2_10

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