According to research, people who had strong social relationships had a 50% increased likelihood of survival.
San Francisco, CA, July 14, 2020 – Today, Nextdoor is launching the KIND Challenge, a global effort that aims to unite neighbors to cultivate a kinder world by fighting loneliness and social isolation. With new research showing that COVID-19 has had a negative impact on mental health, the KIND (Kindness Is Nextdoor) Challenge will encourage neighbors to reach out online to build deeper connections in their neighborhoods.
The KIND Challenge also kicks off of a global research study conducted by Nextdoor on connectedness, community, and kindness, and how these relate to our neighbors and neighborhoods—the first at this scale. Nextdoor will work with three top health researchers to analyze the survey results: Australia-based Dr. Michelle Lim, a leading expert on loneliness and health; UK-based Dr. Pamela Qualter, a leading expert in child and adolescent loneliness; and US-based Dr. Julianne Holt-Lunstad, a leading expert on social isolation and the influence of both the quantity and the quality of social relationships on long-term health.
Loneliness is a worldwide health problem:
- In the United States, a Cigna study found that over 60% of adults report feeling lonely, which can have the same impact on mortality as smoking 15 cigarettes a day, making it more dangerous than obesity.
- Research in Australia found that 1 in 4 people felt lonely at least three days a week.
- According to research from the BBC, 40% of people in the UK under the age of 25 report feeling lonely often or very often, and 27% of people over the age of 75 report feeling the same.
“Social connection is crucial to human development, health and survival, and that starts where we live, in the neighborhood,” shared Dr. Holt-Lunstad. This is demonstrated in her findings, which indicate a 50% increased likelihood of survival for participants with stronger social relationships. This finding remained consistent across age, sex, initial health status, cause of death, and follow-up period.
Dr. Michelle Lim who leads the multi-country study with Dr. Holt-Lunstad noted that “This study is the first of its kind in terms of global scale as it is being conducted across three countries. This important effort will examine the effects of these connecting behaviors and whether these small acts can improve one’s quality of life, health, and wellbeing.”
A recent Nextdoor study in the US showed that while 83% of members are feeling overwhelmingly isolated from friends and family, 84% of Nextdoor members feel they have a neighbor they can rely on and 46% believe their neighbors have had a positive impact on their community during this time.
“As focused as we’ve been on the current public health crisis and the effects it will have on our economy, our impulse to come together during this time has laid the groundwork for fighting a social recession within our neighborhoods,” stated Nextdoor CEO, Sarah Friar. “Now more than ever, reaching out and connecting with our fellow neighbors will continue to be important. Nextdoor is proud to partner with leading researchers on this work to help build connections with the people nearest to us — our neighbors — so our neighborhoods can re-emerge with lasting strength.”
Through its research partnerships, Nextdoor is looking at ways to break the cycle of loneliness and social isolation, and create a more welcoming climate around the world, one neighborhood at a time.
Learn more about the study at https://go.nextdoor.com/KIND-Challenge-us.
About Nextdoor, Inc.
Nextdoor is the neighborhood hub for trusted connections and the exchange of helpful information, goods, and services. We believe that by bringing neighbors together, we can cultivate a kinder world where everyone has a neighborhood they can rely on.
Building connections is a universal human need. That truth, and the reality that neighborhoods are one of the most important and useful communities in our lives, have been a guiding principle for Nextdoor since the beginning. Today, neighbors rely on Nextdoor in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Denmark, Australia, and Canada, with many more to come.
Nextdoor is a privately-held company based in San Francisco with backing from prominent investors including Benchmark, Shasta Ventures, Greylock Partners, Kleiner Perkins, Riverwood Capital, Bond, Axel Springer, Comcast Ventures, and others. For additional information and images: nextdoor.com/newsroom.