Connecting in Covid: What has the Coronavirus pandemic unearthed about how and why we connect with each other?

The sunniest month on record now reads: ‘’May 2020’’, with a cumulative 266 hours of blissful sunshine raining down in the terminus of spring. Awash with this solar cheer, the hot topic of 2020 can begin to recede out of the spotlight of people’s minds, until a habitual checking of the phone or TV screen hurtles it back to centre stage, and our spirits are left dampened by a sobering sense of resignation.

The vast scope of this deadly virus has been extraordinary; the young, the elderly, rich, and poor have all been glazed by its malignant hand. This virus has ransacked luxury like a mid-western tornado, uprooting many of life’s pleasures leaving behind the austere of a mere functioning society, typified by what is ‘essential’. Shops and hospitals are among the few services that remain open, and their importance need have no introduction about their necessity. Simply, without them, we cannot live. They sustain our existence. However, what about the less tangible components of our existence that are essential for giving us ‘life’, or, rather, a life? To denote life’s pleasures that make our lives something beyond the maintenance of a pulse and other bodily functions, allowing us to prosper and live fully. One of life’s most pleasurable, and taken for granted, necessities is connection. How and who we connect with is a fundamental part of what gives our lives meaning and enjoyment. Alas, our social ties have been adjourned, boxed away to be resumed at an unknown date. Therefore, there is grave importance in exploring how and why we connect, whilst seemingly we are adrift from one another amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, and what effects this may have.

A sensible starting place, therefore, would be to examine what the word ‘connection’ means. We use terms like ‘internet connection’, ‘they have connections in the industry’. After a surprisingly fruitful first date, we might say ‘there was a real connection’. Although the exact wording of the definition may vary, it can generally be defined as a link or relationship between things. The key underlying theme to any definition must be linkage or a word of that ilk. Connection, however, describes a linkage that is of significance to us. We wouldn’t say ‘internet link’ or we ‘linked’ well on the first date because it denotes a looser, less significant association between subjects or objects. So, any connection tends to imply importance; A relationship is maintained through connection.

As inherently social animals, the amount, and more importantly the quality, of our relationships with others are as important to our well-being as the foods we eat. Our closest ancestral brethren, primates, all exist in groups and how they interact with the group defines their social position and how they live. As far back as 130,000 years ago, early human tribes would exchange resources with other tribes hundreds of miles away. It is just simply in our DNA to connect and interact with each other.

Whilst many of us will be coping better with the lockdown than others, those particularly susceptible to the infringements on their mental well-being are those that are the loneliest. The UK charity ‘Campaign to End Loneliness’ cites research which shows that loneliness is worse for your health than obesity and can increase the risk of death by a startling 29%. Lonely people are also more prone to depression and suicide. The British Red Cross has estimated that sadly 9 million adults of all ages are either often and always lonely, and the number of lonely over 50’s is predicted to reach 2 million by 2025/26, from around 1.4 million in 2016/17, an alarming rise of 49%. The oppression from the lockdown starves millions of people of social ties, which creates a public health crisis in and of itself. For the elderly, the onslaught of both chronic loneliness, and the increased risk of terror from the virus itself, create a dangerous situation which presents an unprecedented attack on their resolve. With around 40% of all older people saying the TV is their main company, words like ‘crisis’ ‘death toll’ ‘lockdown’ are being plastered all over the news at the moment, and this source of company encircles people, forcing them to feel diminutive against the imperiousness of negativity.

With the number of lonely people on the rise, the Covid-19 pandemic may help us understand how connection, or the lack thereof, affects us, providing knowledge on how to address this growing phenomenon in the future. With the emergence of phrases like ‘social distancing’, ‘self-isolating’ and ‘exclusion zones’ becoming the new normal, exploring how the severing of ties has impacted people is of ever-growing importance, particularly when the topic of ‘health and well-being’ resides in the forefront of millions of minds.

To investigate this, 1,327 people were asked a series of questions as part of ‘The Opinions and Lifestyle Survey’ in April 2020 which sought to investigate how people were personally feeling the effects of the pandemic and the resultant lockdown. A startling 86% of respondents said they were somewhat or extremely worried about how the pandemic will affect them, and their mental health. A worrying 38% of respondents reported having ‘high levels of anxiety’ due to the pandemic and a study by the University of Manchester concluded that 83% of under 25’s with an existing mental health condition had felt their mental health deteriorate during the lockdown. The incessant barrage of gloomy pessimism allied with the severance of social ties has laid siege to the well-being of countless people, creating flaring anxiety and a teeming sense of powerlessness of the individual.

The rise in social angst correlates with changes in the ways people are consuming alcohol during the lockdown, with many inevitably turning to alcohol to seek temporary refuge from the prevailing negativity. It is worth remembering that Boris Johnson’s announcement of the lockdown in March was accompanied by the reassuring concession of the off-licenses remaining open for business, which gave rise to stirring winds in the desolate streets from the immeasurable sighs of relief. According to the charity ‘Alcohol Change UK’, 21% of people admitted to drinking more frequently during the lockdown (which equates to 8.6 million) and 18% of daily drinkers are guzzling more per session. Also, most people who are drinking more often are consuming more on a typical drinking day. The lockdown imposed in March has provoked a destructive social cascade that’s virulence has seeped into the lives of millions, with many turning to detrimental vices, like alcohol, to escape.

As well as providing a leaky roof over troubled heads, alcohol is socialisation’s age-old weapon of choice, and the shutting down of pubs, bars, and restaurants has altered alcohol consumption in the other direction also. Roughly 1 in 3 have either stopped drinking or reduce the amount they drink and 6% have embraced tee-totalism, demonstrating a clear link between the scarcity of connection and people’s behaviours. Frequenting the local pub is the prescription for loneliness for countless numbers of people up and down the country. Conversations about football or politics that echo around the country are often the only real conversations that some people have, and therefore act as medicine for their acute loneliness. In the wake of the lockdown, many people’s main source of interaction and connection has been removed, which will inevitably rock their mental well-being.

Therefore, maintaining positive connections during this time is vital for our health. According to Psychologist Henry Cloud, being part of a community that is overcoming difficulties and thriving together, increases an individual’s chances of prospering. So, how are people managing to stay connected when, seemingly, we are ‘socially distanced’ or ‘isolated’? For many of us, it is Social Media that has acted as a lifeboat in the turbidity of the pandemic sea. Whilst we watch our old ways of living slowly sink, the emphasis and importance of social media in maintaining interaction is definitive of the lockdown period. There are 70% more people participating in video calls, using various social media platforms and the time people are spending on these calls has doubled globally. Pub quizzes on ‘Zoom’ and various other social media challenges are some examples of how people have used innovative ways to keep the fun and energy we experience in our relationships.

Aside from its use as a platform for contact with our loved ones, social networking has acted as a vessel for spreading awareness and recognition of the enduring positivity employed by many to stay afloat. The ritualization of #ClapForCarers illustrates the warmness that persists and displays a clear togetherness which celebrates the heroic efforts to sustain human life. The foundation of this whole concept reveals the innate instinct for desiring connection and its recognition as a supreme virtue of the human condition. Social media has acted as a catalyst in spreading the awareness of this. The inspiring charitable endeavours by Captain Tom Moore, through which he has raised £32 million for NHS charities, would undoubtedly have been less effectual without the use of social networks to raise awareness and to provide a platform for donations.

However, the effect of social media is dependent upon our use of it, more specifically, the quality of it. Poor social connections are estimated to be as bad for our health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day, according to The Campaign to End Loneliness. A combination of a global pandemic and social media acts as a breeding ground for fake news, hysteria, and the position of opinions by non-experts which can infiltrate the minds of millions, leaving them feeling more alone and stranded in the tumultuous seas of their mind. Furthermore, Research posted on Research Gate shows that social media can affect our emotional state in both directions depending on how it is used. If we are consistently exposed to toxic material, such as death and abusive arguments online, we will perceive that we are in a threatening or dangerous environment, we are at the mercy of negative thoughts, and deteriorating mental health naturally ensues. The opposite is true when we are surrounded by more positive material. Research in the journal FAMA links excessive screen time with depression, and The World Health Organisation has even recommended to restrict our use of social media and watching the news to provide a mental respite against the negativity. Therefore, regarding the importance of connection, it is imperative to stay connected but to do so in the right ways. Connecting exclusively, and/or excessively to negative material and people can only serve to do more harm than good.

Our ability to digitally connect whilst our physically connective ties have been severed has acted as a spare tyre in facilitating the persistence of our functioning lives on an individual, as well as, social level. Productivity and output are contingent upon the effectivity of communication in business also, and as we enter the ‘new normal’ phase, online mediums will be heavily relied upon for businesses to be sustained and grow. We are most likely at a revolutionary juncture in the way business is conducted. How people work and how services are provided is likely to be forever changed, with rerouting towards online interaction from physical meetings likely to take place and the home increasingly becoming the new workplace. The furlough scheme, whilst helpful for many, would have been too financially burdensome for numerous people, where that extra 20% may be pivotal in keeping them financially afloat. To be able to continue working from home through the use of technology has enabled these people to avoid potential financial jeopardy.

As we sluggish embark on the new decade, the increasing significance and reliance upon social networks and digital communication mediums have been firmly uncovered by the pandemic. A survey by Kongres, a leading meetings industry magazine in Europe, asked 361 meeting planners how they have adapted to the lockdown, and how this period may have shaped future business practices. It was revealed that social media was the main communication medium used during the lockdown, further demonstrating its increased influence during this unprecedented time. The increased emphasis on online communications has given impetus to companies to rethink and restructure how they interact with their markets. 18.43% said they will invest most into their websites post-lockdown, with social media being the second most sought after investment channel with 18.09% of respondents seeking to expand that the most.

‘Carrying out postponed events’ was the most occurring top priority for those surveyed, with 34.5% citing this as the most pressing issue post-lockdown, which is inevitably going to be very occurrent on account of the suspension of actual, physical interaction. However, improving engagements with clients ranked second, with 25.3% stating this as a top priority, and reaching a relevant audience third with 13.8%. These both demonstrate a desire for businesses to develop how they connect with their market and their customers, further underlining how the importance of connection is an integral foundation of growth.

Therefore, the most dynamic businesses, those that can accommodate change through adaptation are the ones that will inevitably prosper. In the words of Charles Darwin ‘’It is not the strongest species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is one that is most adaptable to change.’’ Good relationships in business are integral to success, and to maintain and develop these relationships, there will be an increased significance placed on technology to connect. The study by Kongres illustrates a desire for businesses to adapt to the times, which is currently a time of physical distancing and online connection. Furthermore, the relevance of this is even more potent as the inevitable economic crash that awaits compels people to try and function in the economy as best they can. The importance of how we connect online, even for purely economic purposes, has never been greater.

Going forward, the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic needn’t be lined solely with Economic Armageddon and the corpses of its victims. There are lessons to be learned that can allow us to develop, and that is true at both the micro and macro levels. How individuals, institutions, and businesses respond will ultimately pave the way for life going forward, in the hangover period of this intoxicating, yet enlightening phase. Better relationships between individuals, between governments and between businesses will serve to haul us out of the abyss and into prosperity. Ultimately, how we connect creates us and maybe when we are emancipated from the lockdown we will begin to realise that the relationships we have with people, with things, the world, and ourselves are the colours with which we paint our lives.