Loneliness

Preliminary Evidence That Lonely People Lose the Reflex to Mimic Other People’s Smiles, Potentially Sustaining Their Isolation

A new study, available as a preprint on PsyArXiv, reveals a way in which loneliness seems to be maintained and, therefore, a potential route to an intervention.

British Psychological Society Research Digest

The Surprising Benefits of Talking to Strangers

Research suggests we may often underestimate the positive impact of connecting with others for both our own and others’ wellbeing.

BBC

A Solution for Loneliness

Get out and volunteer, research suggests.

Scientific American

Nostalgia: A Trip Down Memory Lane, and Back

Nostalgia not only brings back pleasant memories of the past, but it can promote our well-being in the present.

Character & Context, Society for Personality and Social Psychology

Is Loneliness a Health Epidemic?

Social disconnection is a serious matter. But let’s not whip up a panic.

Gray Matter, The New York Times

In Good Company: Why We Need Other People to Be Happy

According to biology, neuroscience, psychology, and more, our bodies actually tend to work better when we’re around not alone.

NBC News BETTER

The Surprising Effects of Loneliness on Health

Scientists are gaining a more refined — and surprising — understanding of the effects of loneliness and isolation on health.

Well, The New York Times

New Evidence for the Necessity of Loneliness

A specific set of neurons deep in the brain may motivate us to seek company, holding social species together.

Quanta Magazine

What Makes a Good Life? Lessons From the Longest Study on Happiness

What keeps us happy and healthy as we go through life? If you think it’s fame and money, you’re not alone — but, according to psychiatrist Robert Waldinger, you’re mistaken.

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