Solitude and Well-being: Considerations for the Digital Age

Solitude has the capacity to support or suppress well-being, depending on the conditions under which it is experienced, and those conditions are changing in the digital era. Before the uptake of the internet and mobile phones in daily life, solitude was primarily considered as a matter of being physically alone. Today, people can socially connect anytime-anywhere, which means solitude is no longer a mandatory experience. Furthermore, there are expanding layers of latent social connection and underlying expectations for accessibility that can shade how people experience time alone. This review addresses the changing conditions of solitude in the digital era, while reflecting on how we can better understand its benefits for well-being moving forward. Keywords Solitude; Social psychology; Psychiatry; Psychological well-being