In my country, Australia, there were six long lockdowns. Not being able to socialise regularly over that chunk of a few years could have affected people.
I am Gen Y and in my early-mid 30s now. I was actually homeschooled my entire life. I felt that being homeschooled really affected my ability to socialise. I was learning basic social skills into my mid 20s, which was fairly embarrassing for me.
(I am on the younger, but not youngest, side of Gen Z)
The uk made exams “easier” (they made exams less about memorising facts and more about applying them) for students in secondary school during the lockdowns, that was quite nice. (And I dont know anyone who did any worse in exams because of lockdown)
I definitely feel like I’m not as good as socialising as I should be, but I don’t know if that’s just me because I don’t have a non-lockdown version of myself to compare to.
I think I would rather be the person I am because of the lockdown than the person I would have been without it. (although I didn’t lose anyone close to me, I definitly think the world would have been better without it)
Thanks for sharing! I’m old enough to be your mom, so excuse my ignorance.
How much of your social skill issues are cos of communicating with friends via text form rather than verbally? And how much interacting does your generation do online rather than irl?
None, I rarely text my friends because I am usually just with them, the only times I text them is to organise something in person.
I’d say that, depending on your hobbies, it’s a 50/50 split. People who don’t play video games spend more time with friends irl and people who don’t have many hobbies outside of video games spend more time with friends online.
I would also say a lot of stuff in my life has pushed me towards spending more time with friends online. (Medical stuff, anxiety, covid)