Sharing – New research illustrates how live events foster social connection
Yesterday, I shared a post discussing the importance of serving others as a way to foster community. Another way to do that is to attend public events.
Critically, though, while live events can help, there are things that make some events better than others:
Researchers identified key event characteristics that reliably predicted stronger feelings of social connection. The most significant findings indicated that active participation was particularly important.
This harkens back to yesterday’s post about serving others. Being an active participant in a volunteer effort is a more effective event, and doing it repeatedly can make the short-term boost we get from an event into something more sustainable for the mental health of everyone involved.
That’s not to say that everyone should volunteer at a soup kitchen tomorrow, though that is a good idea if you can do so. It can also mean volunteering for a professional mentoring program at work, teaching senior citizens new skills, delivering meals to the homebound, or coordinating fun community events, among other options. There are numerous opportunities out there to volunteer your skills and help others, as well as create meaningful connections. There are multiple opportunities to gather for short-term events, such as concerts and sports, where you may not be an active participant, but you’re part of the fan community.
If we’re going to become a less lonely society, we need to take advantage of opportunities to gather together. It’s that simple. It’s also becoming more challenging to do as we hide behind social media and news media, more interested in keeping us afraid of “others” so that we will continue to give them our attention.
The real world is nowhere near as dangerous as the people with a vested interest in scaring us would have you believe. In fact, gathering together can be pretty fun.
