Connected yet alone

Despite the promise of unprecedented connectivity afforded by digital technologies, loneliness remains a significant social challenge, particularly among young adults, who report higher levels of loneliness than any other age group despite being the most active users of social networking sites (SNSs). This paradox has become a central concern within research on digital wellbeing, prompting closer examination of how online sociality may simultaneously alleviate and intensify experiences of isolation. This chapter offers a qualitative investigation into how loneliness is experienced, constructed, and negotiated within the collective environments of SNSs. Drawing on a thematic discourse analysis of 20 in-depth interviews with British young adults aged 18–24 from diverse educational and occupational backgrounds, the study examines platform-specific practices and everyday digital interactions. Guided by the theoretical frameworks of digital mediation and digital ecology, the analysis conceptualises SNSs as socio-technical mediators embedded within affective, behavioural, and algorithmic systems. The findings demonstrate that loneliness is not a fixed psychological state nor a simple outcome of time spent online, but a relational and discursively produced experience shaped by platform affordances and cultural norms. Participants’ accounts reveal SNSs as a multifaceted digital ecology in which dynamics of connection, comparison, visibility, and self-regulation structure the emotional textures of everyday digital life. The chapter advances a nuanced ecological understanding of digital loneliness and contributes to broader debates on youth wellbeing in networked environments.