Start here · Essential guide
How Social Connection Is Studied Across Communities
An overview of the concepts and methods behind studies of social connection, from personal networks and contact frequency to belonging, and what each can show.
People and Platforms
Family, Community and Belonging
How researchers study connection between people and places.
Friendship Maintenance and the Rise of Group Chats
Why small private messaging groups make friendship hard to measure online, and what researchers can and cannot learn about staying in touch from them.
Household Structure and How Households Are Defined
How definitions of a household shape claims about family change, and why counts of living alone, shared homes and multigenerational living depend on the rules used.
Loneliness Research and How It Is Defined and Measured
An educational look at how loneliness differs from being alone, how scales and single questions are used, and why loneliness figures can be hard to compare.
Neighbours, Trust and Community Surveys
How surveys ask about trust in neighbours and other people, why answers shift with wording, and how to read figures on social trust with appropriate caution.
Partnership Timing Trends in Context
How changes in when people form partnerships are tracked, which measures are used, and the economic and social factors that shape the timing of partnering.
Religious and Secular Identity in Survey Research
How surveys separate belief, belonging and practice, why a single religious affiliation label can mislead, and what to check when reading figures on religion.
Volunteering and Civic Participation Trends
How helping and group involvement are counted, why formal and informal volunteering differ, and what to check before trusting a claim about civic participation.
Related topics
More in people and platforms
Social Media and Wellbeing How to read research on platforms, mood, body image and self-worth. Social Media and Society What studies of relationships, politics and generations can show. Work and Communication Reading claims about remote work, office tools and workplace talk. Language and Change How shifts in everyday language are observed and interpreted. Careers and Changing Work How claims about jobs and the future of work are built.