New research shows that every day we’re speaking about 300 fewer words than we did the day before. Between 2005 and 2019, the number of words we speak every day dropped 28%, according to a paper in the journal Perspectives on Psychological Science.
Texting, technology, apps to do things like order coffee and food, and music and podcasts in our pockets and headphones on our ears have all contributed to fewer interactions with others.
Here & Now‘s Scott Tong speaks with Valeria Pfeifer, the lead author of that study and an assistant professor of psychology and counseling at the University of Missouri, Kansas City, about the ways speaking less can erode our social connections and even our emotional and cognitive health.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
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