Victor Davis Hanson: In His Own Words Lonely, Online, and Disconnected? What 1,000 Young Men Say About Life, Mentorship, and Meaning
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Jan 31, 2026 Alex Tarascio, a pollster and strategist at Cygnal who led a survey of 1,000 young men, outlines the study and methods. He discusses online time patterns, links between social activities and problem-solving, and how mentorship, exercise, and moderate screen limits correlate with better life direction. He also highlights which factors predict trouble and suggests areas for further research.
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Extensive Recreational Screen Time Is Widespread
- 27% of young men spend more than six hours a day online for recreation and 53% spend 3–5 hours daily.
- High recreational online time is widespread and correlates with negative life perceptions.
Survey Design Enabled Meaningful Subgroup Comparisons
- The survey sampled 1,000 men aged 16–28 to capture Gen Z and allow subgroup comparisons like fraternity membership.
- Sufficient sample size enabled analysis of how group affiliation correlates with behaviors and perceptions.
Non-Affiliated Men Are More Online And Isolated
- Men not in any organized group made up 35% of the sample and had very high recreational online time.
- Non-affiliated men were nearly absent from the low-online group and overrepresented in high-online use.