'Facebook generation' lonelier than elderly 

Teenage girls using cell phones
Young people have many more online friends - which doesn't stop them feeling lonelier than older generations Credit: Axel Bernstorff/Cultura

Younger people are lonelier than older people because most of their friends are made online, research has found. 

While loneliness among older people is a well-known issue, a new study suggests that social media means that millennials are increasingly the loneliest generation.  

According to the survey, 89 per cent of them said they had suffered from loneliness, compared to 70 per cent of over-55s. 

Older people are more likely to live alone - but the "Facebook generation" have online friends in much higher numbers. 

Those aged between 18 and 34 have more than six times the number of online friends as "real-life" friends.

On average people have 65 online friends and 14 "traditional" friends, but this rises to 103 online friends and 17 "offline" friends among those aged 18 to 34.

Three million people have no friends at all, the research found. 

The findings suggest that young people might be more vulnerable to online fraud and scams than previously thought

Lonely people are more likely to try to make friends on social media and are more likely to trust those they meet online. 

Building society Nationwide, who carried out the research, said that 36 per cent of those who said they felt lonely have been a victim of fraud, compared to nine per cent of those who were not lonely.

Chad Rogerson, head of customer vulnerability and diversity, said: "Those who do feel socially isolated are more willing to respond to someone they don’t know on social media or via email, actively be on dating sites and strike up conversations with strangers."

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