How can we increase our life expectancy? This is a question that has haunted humanity for centuries. We thought we had it partially figured out with exercise and a healthy diet, but research shows that the soft drivers of life, like love, empathy, and kindness, can be just as important. Who would have thought?
The advent of the internet and new technologies was supposed to bring people closer together. In the end, has it rather contributed to their distancing? This question has become increasingly critical as the unexpected effects of the technological revolution permeate our interpersonal relationships, further fragmenting our society every day.
Just look at the graph below to see that since - the year smartphones became widely available and social media took off - mental health issues have exploded. This trend is observed all over the world, among both women and men, and particularly among young people, a topic of great concern that I have already addressed in this article.
As TikTok is currently at the center of a war between the West and China, amid accusations of spying and misusing data, this example tends to illustrate the gradual loss of trust in social networks that are already criticized for their ability to supplement face-to-face relationships. The same observation applies to messaging apps, which make us more passive and less assertive in our interactions with others. Furthermore, the use of " dark patterns " - which the European Data Protection Committee is trying to regulate - and features such as last seen or the message read time have created a culture of immediacy.
As a result, waiting for a response from someone can be a source of anxiety or frustration. The dating world has been flooded with Tinder-related anecdotes that have led to endless commercial exploitation. Documentaries , books, and Instagram accounts all highlight the almost parody-like, and at times grotesque, nature of dating apps. Terms like ghosting , benching , breadcrumbing , serendipidating , and stashing are now commonplace, punctuating stories that reveal a certain toxic nonchalance in these relationships that have become commodified by technology.
