Self-service technologies — like self-checkouts or government service kiosks — are decreasing interactions with other people. This may affect our politics and sense of community.
The presence of pets makes people seem more trustworthy, research has found. People are more likely to help a stranger with a dog or another pet than a person without one.
A study of 3,000 companies found a correlation between local ‘social capital’ – which measures such variables as voter turnout and census response rates – and more women on corporate boards.
The relationships that people form with others outside of their homes can translate into crucial help in a disaster. But what happens if they can’t build those ties because of social distancing?
For Joe Biden to make good on his promise to heal the nation’s divisions, he will need to address the social disconnection that underlies ‘racialised economics’.
Without implying that Don Cherry is deserving of a second chance given his track record, it wouldn’t be a bad thing if bridged differences resulted in redemption instead of cancellation.
Gentrification happens when attempts to build bridges between disenfranchised people and their better-off peers go awry – but it doesn’t have to be this way.
Social media provide shortcuts to things we yearn for, like connection and validation. Media effects scholars explain the psychological benefits we get from Facebook that make it so hard to quit.
Director of Centre for Postgraduate Studies, Rhodes University & Visiting Research Professor in Center for International Higher Education, Boston College, Rhodes University