Sense of social connection

Social connection

Sense of social connection

Social interactions with friends, family and community groups help Canberrans to feel valued and connected to the broader community.

Social connection scale

This measure shows Canberrans’ levels of social connection, in terms of face-to-face activities such as spending time in person with family and friends, or chatting with neighbours.

In 2024, 15.6% of respondents to the University of Canberra’s Living Well in the ACT Region survey reported having high levels of social connection, compared to 29.1% in 2023. The 2024 result was still higher than in the pre-COVID period.

The proportion of Canberrans reporting low levels of social connection rose from 45.3% in early 2023 to 59.8% in 2024.

Online and phone also form an important part of our social connection. When these are examined for 2024, 26% of Canberrans reported having high social connection, with 45% reporting low social connection.

The University of Canberra 2024 Living Well in the ACT Region survey showed that in-person social connection is lower than average for:

Financial stress also impacts our ability to connect with others. Canberrans who report living in poor or very poor households also report spending significantly less time with family and friends.

Data for this indicator are sourced from the University of Canberra Living well in the ACT Region survey. Detailed survey data, survey user guide and published reports from the survey can be accessed at https://www.regionalwellbeing.org.au/living-well-in-the-act-region/.

Line graph of percentage of respondents who reported high, moderate and low levels of face-to-face social connection, between 2019 and 2024.

In 2024:

  • 59.8% reported a low level of social connection compared to 45.3% in 2023
  • 24.6% reported a moderate level of social connection compared to 25.6% in 2023
  • 15.6% reported a high level of social connection compared to 29.1% in 2023.

The Living Well in the ACT Region survey, conducted by the University of Canberra, aims to measure, track and understand the wellbeing and resilience of adult residents living in the Australian Capital Territory region of Australia. It examines factors known to affect wellbeing and resilience at the individual, household, community and regional level.

When generating data for the ACT, statistical weighting is used to address differences between the sample of people who respond to the survey, and the characteristics of the ACT adult population.

Data are produced from this survey for different groups of people in the ACT. The 'overall response' category represents responses at the ACT population level. Where reliable estimates can be produced, data are also presented for Canberrans by: gender, age, cultural background, gender identity and sexuality, carer role and experience of disability. Not all differences over time or between groups are statistically significant: information on confidence intervals for the data presented here is available in data tables that can be accessed at https://www.regionalwellbeing.org.au/living-well-in-the-act-region/.

Care is needed when interpreting the differences in findings between groups as the descriptive statistics published here show where there are differences in wellbeing, but not what has caused those differences in wellbeing.

Further information about the survey can be found at Living Well in the ACT Region or by contacting regionalwellbeing@canberra.edu.au.