This page provides some statistcal resources that help teachers and witnesses understand the trends in Techgnology Use so that we can better support  Marriages and Families

In many ways our society is more materially prosperous then in prior years
Inequality still remains a serious concern and our Church must still prioritize support and care for the poor. Yet the poverty of our time goes beyond a simple lack of material goods and resources. 

Our society has experienced a considerable increase in material prosperity. in 1973 the average square footage of a house was 1,660 feet, in 1990 it grew to 2,080 in our decade it has grown to 2,392. In 1990 mobile phones were uncommon. Now they are everywhere and more sophisticated than the personal computers available when our children were born. In 1990 inflation adjusted GDP was $9.366T in 2018, it increased to $18,638T. While these improvements are beneficial, they have not made our culture content. 

People feel more lonely and isolated  
These are the findings from an Ipsos poll conducted February 21 – March 6, 2018 on behalf of CIGNA a large health insuranc company. For the survey, a sample of 20,096 adults ages 18 and over from the continental U.S., Alaska and Hawaii was interviewed online, in English. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll has a credibility interval of ±0.8 percentage points for all respondents surveyed. Survey results indicated the following:

• Nearly half of Americans report feeling alone 46% or left out 48%
• One in four (27%) Americans rarely or never feel as though there are people who really understand them
• Two in five sometimes or always feel their relationships are not meaningful (43%) and that they are isolated from others
• Only around half of Americans (53%) have meaningful social interactions, such as an extended conversation with a friend
• Generation Z (adults ages 18-22) is the loneliest generation and claims to be in worse health than older generation
• Americans who live with others are less likely to be lonely compared to those who live alone. However, this does not apply to single parents/guardians – even though they live with children, they are more likely to be lonely.
   

The Los Angeles Times has run articles documenting a "Loneliness Crisis on College Campuses" and in the City of Los Angeles in general. Kay Hymowitz of City Journal has also documented how the decline of the family has led to a epidemic of loneliness in our nation. 

A number of scholars have associated the increase in reliance on technology (mobile phones, social media) with a corresponding decrease in human interaction and relationship that has led to increased lonliness and anxiety. The evidence for this includes the following.  

• “More U.S. adolescents and young adults in the late 2010s, versus the mid-2000s, experienced serious psychological distress, major depression or suicidal thoughts, and more attempted suicide," Jean Twenge, author of iGen.
• Between 2008 and 2017 teens and pre-teens experienced a 62% increase in depression without a corresponding increase in other age groups
• 48% of 11-16 year olds have seen pornography online
• 50% of teens feel they are addicted to their mobile devices. 59% of parents said their teens were addicted.

Our faith teaches that human relationship, especially relationships in the family and the Church, play critical roles in helping us to relate to God and as St. Augustine reminds us "O God you made us for yourself and our hearts are restless until they rest in you." (St. Augustine, the Confessions Chapter 1, Book 1). As parents and leaders in faith communities, our response to the challenge of these times is to foster deeper relationships with Christ who will lead us to a deeper relationship with one another.