What research knows about friendship.
Why contact fades without anyone being to blame. How many hours it takes for acquaintances to become friends. And what 85 years of Harvard research found out about a good life.
- 01Relationships
Why friendships grow quieter
Hardly any friendship ends in an argument. Most of them simply stop being loud. What is behind that, and why it says nothing about how close you really are.
- 02Research
The longest study of a good life
Since 1938, researchers at Harvard have followed the same people through their entire lives. After more than 85 years, the clearest finding is surprisingly unspectacular.
- 03Psychology
The message you never send
We almost consistently underestimate how much other people enjoy an unexpected hello. The research on this is unusually clear, and it explains why so many messages stay in the drafts.
- 04Closeness
Friendship takes hours
A researcher did the maths on how much shared time it takes for acquaintances to become friends. The numbers are sobering and genuinely useful at the same time.
- 05Habit
Good intentions need a trigger
Resolving to get in touch more often almost never leads to getting in touch more often. What is missing is not willpower, but a moment for the intention to attach itself to.