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Between lockdowns, social distancing, and the global shift to work from home, many of us have had to come to terms with spending an unprecedented amount of time alone.
Research suggests that solitude and isolation can have a considerable impact on our brains. A key study by German scientists that looked into this was published in December 2019.
The study focused on a group of nine polar explorers who lived at a research station in Antarctica for 14 months.
Perhaps to your surprise, as things started to go back to normal people found it more difficult than before to interact normally with friends and family.
Firstly, the study showed that on average the region of the brain associated with memory shrunk by around 7% over the course of the expedition.
Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, many of us have spent more time by ourselves over one year than we have over the course of our entire lives.
Those leading the study speculated that the decline in brain function can be attributed to the prolonged social isolation and general monotony experienced by the explorers.
The study did not measure the participants’ social skills, but other research has shown that expeditioners who “overwinter” in Antarctica are more socially dysfunctional in midwinter.
The question as to how COVID-19 measures may be affecting our social skills is complex and difficult to answer. Let’s start by distinguishing between "solitude" and "loneliness."
For example, lonely people are likely to feel social threats, such as saying the wrong thing, more deeply than people who are not lonely.
The explorers also performed worse on two intelligence tests at the end of the expedition, one for spatial processing and the other for selective attention.
One can experience solitude without being lonely; it can be thought of as a contented state. Loneliness, on the other hand, involves feelings of isolation and a yearning for social interaction.
They are more likely to subscribe to confirmation bias and interpret the words and actions of others in a way that supports their own negative outlook.
All of this contributes to what is called the "loneliness loop," in which isolation leads to toxic feelings of low self-esteem and stress, which in turn make people withdraw further.
People suffering from loneliness are also less able to regulate their own thoughts and feelings, a skill that is critical when it comes to complying with social norms.
For instance, one 2014 study showed that adolescents who prefer to spend time on their own will tend to be less socially able.
Solitude, on the other hand, is traditionally thought of as benign. Philosophers, religious leaders, and artists all have good things to say about solitude.
However, there is more and more evidence to suggest that retreating into isolation is never good, even if it is done on purpose.
It seems, then, that interacting with others is important if we want to maintain our social skills. And research shows that this is particularly true for children.
According to psychologist and author Ty Tashiro, young people need face-to-face contact to “learn about the abundance of social cues and expectations that happen when you're in a real-life situation.”
Indeed, there is an abundance of research, albeit most of it related to animals, that shows how important social contact is during brain development.
In one study of a group of Portuguese preschoolers, those children who had more social engagement experienced an increase in their social ability.
According to Tashiro, a bit of social awkwardness makes a person a great companion, because they have to think more about a person’s feelings or how to respond to a situation.
There is also research to suggest that after school activities are great for social skills, and that growing up with siblings makes us more able to navigate this social world.
If this all sounds like reason enough for despair in these times of post-COVID-19, home office, and homeschooling, do not fear. There may be some perks to solitude, too.
And according to Nigel Ansell, who lived in extreme isolation for five years, living in isolation can be a great challenge for you to see how self-sufficient you really are.
Sources: (BBC)
See also: The importance of quality time
For instance, studies show that rats who are raised alone have smaller brains and that social fish who are reared in isolation become less co-operative.
The negative impact that loneliness can have on our social skills is well documented. Firstly, research shows that loneliness can make it more difficult for sufferers to interact normally with others.
Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic, life has been strange for many people. Between social distancing measures and the shift to work from home, many of us started to spend too much time alone.
But research suggests that going back to normal may not be all that easy. Indeed, evidence shows that spending an extended period of time in isolation can have a lasting impact on our ability to interact with one another.
Check out this gallery to learn how being alone can affect our social skills.
How being alone can affect our social skills
Is loneliness emerging as a widespread crisis?
LIFESTYLE Covid-19
Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic, life has been strange for many people. Between social distancing measures and the shift to work from home, many of us started to spend too much time alone.
But research suggests that going back to normal may not be all that easy. Indeed, evidence shows that spending an extended period of time in isolation can have a lasting impact on our ability to interact with one another.
Check out this gallery to learn how being alone can affect our social skills.