Signal 10.5 percent of Spaniards aged 16+ reported unwanted loneliness in 2022

Summary

According to the EU Loneliness Survey, 10.5 percent of Spain's population aged 16 and over said in 2022 that they experienced unwanted loneliness. In countries such as Ireland or Greece the share was almost twice as high, and the report expects it could keep climbing over the coming decades. Unwanted loneliness is a negative experience arising from a gap between the relationships people have and those they wish for, often felt as emptiness and missing bonds of trust. The report points to living alone, distant migration, remote work and online-centred socialising as forces unsettling personal ties. Some studies put the resulting losses at 4 percent of Spain's GDP. It is in this context that the report sees AI companion chatbots emerging as a response.