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Federal Minister for Family Affairs: Paus: “Loneliness is an underestimated phenomenon”

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Federal Minister for Family Affairs
Paus: “Loneliness is an underestimated phenomenon”

“Loneliness is no longer a phenomenon that only affects older people,” says Lisa Paus (Alliance 90/The Greens). Photo

© Kay Nietfeld/dpa

Loneliness is an underestimated phenomenon, says Minister Paus – and warns of the consequences for society. A new study shows how big the problem is.

Federal Minister for Family Affairs Lisa Paus is calling for more efforts to combat loneliness among young people. “Who knows that younger people are the ones who feel the most lonely after Corona. That finally deserves attention,” the Green politician told the Funke Media newspapers at the start of a week of action on Monday. “We must take loneliness, including that of young people, seriously and act.” According to a study by the Bertelsmann Foundation, almost half of 16- to 30-year-olds feel lonely.

According to the study published on Monday, 35 percent of respondents in this age group said they were moderately lonely. Ten percent even felt very lonely. Compared to the studies conducted in 2021 and 2023, slightly fewer young people now said they were socially and emotionally lonely. In the representative survey, 2,532 young people were interviewed in March.

“Loneliness is no longer a phenomenon that only affects older people. In recent years it has become clear that young people are also increasingly affected by loneliness and thus represent a new risk group,” Anja Langness of the Bertelsmann Foundation was quoted as saying in a statement. Recently there have been several studies that have also described loneliness among young people as a problem.

Actions against loneliness

According to Family Minister Paus, loneliness also has an indirect negative impact on democracy. “Those who lose trust in society also lose trust in democracy; political participation decreases, as does the willingness to vote,” she said. “Loneliness is an underestimated phenomenon.”

The action week entitled “Out of loneliness together” continues until next Sunday. Various events on the topic are planned nationwide. Actions against loneliness and offers for community like in this nationwide action week are important, said Paus. “We have long known that loneliness is as harmful to those affected as smoking, obesity or air pollution.”

The federal government had adopted a strategy against loneliness. The more than 100 measures should help to sensitize society, offer help and promote scientific discussion of the issue, said Paus. “Especially when it comes to the fight against loneliness among younger people, we are faced with a major task.”