A young woman with curly blond hair stands alone on a red and green athletic court.

April 11, 2022

Gen Z is the Loneliest Generation — and It’s Their Parents Fault

Gen Z is the most accomplished generation, but new data show they missed out on fun and family, leaving them more adrift than previous generations.

Gen Z is the most accomplished generation, but new data show they missed out on fun and family, leaving them more adrift than previous generations. Continue Reading →

An African American teenager male attending church.

April 10, 2022

Stop Blaming Young People for Leaving Religion

Much of the decline in current religious commitments can be traced back to the way young adults have been raised.

Much of the decline in current religious commitments can be traced back to the way young adults have been raised. Continue Reading →

A photo of a spiral ceiling made up of mosaic glass windows.

April 5, 2022

For Gen Z, Religious Pluralism Will Require Bridging the Religious-Secular Divide

For Generation Z, American religious life has been defined by its diversity. And religious pluralism has been as much practice as principle. Continue Reading →

A young woman wrapped in a blanket stares pensively out the window.

April 4, 2022

The Childhood Loneliness of Generation Z

There’s a growing concern that young adults today are experiencing an epidemic of loneliness, social isolation, and disconnection. A lot of blame is being placed on social media, or more recently the pandemic. Delayed family formation is another likely factor—young adults are marrying later than they once did. But what if Gen Z is lonelier Continue Reading →

A cartoon drawing of a church. Inside of the church is a pastor looking at empty pews.

March 24, 2022

Generation Z and the Future of Faith in America

The religious and social experiences of young adults today are entirely different than previous generations. New family dynamics and parenting choices are reshaping the religious experiences of young people, setting them on a very different trajectory than past generations and making Generation Z the least religious generation. Continue Reading →

Generation Uncoupled

Generation Uncoupled book

Generation Uncoupled: America's New Gender Divide and the Crisis of Human Connection

Buy Now

Survey Reports

Daniel A. Cox
July 23, 2026

A Digital Divide in American Adolescence: Gender, Class, and the New Teenage Experience

If teenage years once represented a time of rebellion, teenagers’ lives today are marked less by pushing boundaries and more by building their own. Many teenage experiences are less common than they once were—dating, working a part-time job, and experimenting with drugs and alcohol are less common experiences. The 2026 American Teenagers Survey from the Continue Reading →

Daniel A. Cox, Jae Grace, Avery Shields
April 27, 2026

Strangers Next Door: The Decline of Neighborhood Socializing and the Class Divide in Belonging

Acknowledgment The American Enterprise Institute’s Survey Center on American Life is grateful to the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation for its generous support of this research. As Americans spend more of their time online, the neighborhood—once a primary physical location for real-world socialization—is playing less of a central role than ever before. Since Continue Reading →