Social 20-Year-Olds Are More Satisfied at 50

The quantity of social interactions a person has at 20 may increase well-being later in life and perhaps help people live longer.

"Considering everything else that goes on in life over those 30 years—marriage, raising a family, and building a career—it is extraordinary that there appears to be a relationship between the kinds of interactions college students and young adults have and their emotional health later in life," says Cheryl Carmichael. lorenzoantonucci/iStock

The quantity of social interactions a person has at 20—and the quality of social relationships that person has at age 30—may increase well-being later in life and perhaps help people live longer.

“In fact,” says Cheryl Carmichael, the study’s lead author, who conducted the research as a PhD candidate in psychology at the University of Rochester, “having few social connections is equivalent to tobacco use, and it’s higher than for those who drink excessive amounts of alcohol, or who suffer from obesity.”

The new 30-year longitudinal study, which appears in Psychology and Aging, shows that the frequent social interactions that take place at age 20 were beneficial later in life because they help us to figure out who we are, the researchers says.