“I find it increasingly difficult to make new social contacts. Everyone is on their cell phones all the time!” So why not take advantage of it? Melek*, 29, downloaded Bumble for Friends a few months ago. These applications which allow you to make new friends, based on a profile, are increasingly popular, especially among young people. Like Spontacts, developed by students at ETH Zurich, which recorded strong growth last year, particularly among 25-35 year olds.
In Switzerland, recent studies by the Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute showed that one in three adolescents suffered from loneliness. And social media plays a key role in this phenomenon. “Such applications (editor’s note: whose principle is the same as for dating apps) especially facilitate the creation of new contacts for people who are unsure of themselves,” explains Anja Meier, spokesperson for the Pro Juventute foundation. They meet the need for social networking, firstly without having to meet the other person in person.
This is precisely what Fiona* likes. “I can decide for myself who I want to be in contact with, regardless of the circles in which I move. It’s already led to some cool encounters!” Which doesn’t stop this 23-year-old student from having the same best friend since adolescence.
-For his part, Fabian, 34, was disappointed. “I have already exchanged long messages, almost romantic, so that the person ultimately does not want to meet me,” he laments. The other day I wrote to a woman who immediately gave me her number and wanted to meet me. It seemed so weird to me that I deleted my profile.” Melek, for her part, is wary during the first meeting: “I prefer to arrive a little later, to be sure that behind the profile of a potential friend does not hide a man who wants to trap me.”
While Anja Meier readily acknowledges the benefits of such apps, she cautions: “Cultivating friendships more digitally can also cause stress for many people, even if only through the expectation of being reachable in person. permanence.” Pro Juventute therefore advises finding a healthy balance between online and offline activities, without neglecting family and leisure. According to the foundation, this is the only way friendships will last.
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