Are we in a friendship recession? | The James Brown Commentary

Men have no close friends. Well, that's overstating it.

Survey data from the American Survey Center says that 30 years ago, in the early 90s, about 55% of men had at least six close friends.

Today, that number has been cut in half.

And 15% of men reported that they have no close relationships at all.

That's five times the number in 1990.

They call it a friendship recession.

They point to declining religious involvement, lower marriage rates, and changes to the workplace as creating a surge of disconnection.

The accompanying article describes it this way.

Many guys, they see or speak to their best friends every two or three years and say, we just pick up where we left off.

And I've done that.

Too much.

I'm fortunate that I have a few close friends left, but as I get older, the list gets smaller.

Some of that comes from my choices, and some of that comes from theirs.

Family, work, and my inner drive gnaw at my free time.

I'm assuming this is normal, but I haven't the faintest clue.

It's Stein's Law, I suppose.

“If something cannot go on forever, it will stop.”

Even with that, I miss my friends.

What do you think?

And how many close friends do you have?

And are we in a friendship recession?

Why Is It So Hard for Men to Make Close Friends?https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/28/well/family/male-friendship-loneliness.html

American Men Suffer a Friendship Recession

https://www.americansurveycenter.org/commentary/american-men-suffer-a-friendship-recession

Stein’s law

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/charles-krauthammer-steins-law/2013/07/25/f45acb30-f567-11e2-aa2e-4088616498b4_story.html

https://johnmjennings.com/steins-law/

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