Reading: True / False / Not Given: Question 7

Across most high-income countries, the proportion of people living alone has risen steadily for several decades, a shift demographers describe as one of the most significant changes to household structure since industrialisation. In many Western European nations, people living alone now make up close to forty per cent of all households, a figure that would have seemed extraordinary a century ago, when unmarried adults typically resided with parents, other relatives, or in shared lodgings out of economic necessity.

Several factors are usually cited to explain this trend. Rising life expectancy means that a growing number of elderly widows and widowers now spend years, sometimes decades, living independently after the death of a spouse, rather than moving in with adult children as was once customary. At the other end of the age range, young adults are marrying later, if at all, and increasingly value the autonomy of living alone during the years between leaving the family home and forming a long-term partnership. Greater financial independence among women, in particular, has removed one of the strongest historical incentives to marry primarily for economic security.

The consequences of this shift extend well beyond housing statistics. Property developers in many cities have responded by building a far higher proportion of one- and two-bedroom units than in previous decades, sometimes provoking criticism that family-sized housing has become scarce and unaffordable. Public health researchers have also raised concerns about chronic loneliness among certain groups of people who live alone, particularly elderly people with limited mobility and few nearby relatives, and several city governments have launched befriending schemes and community hubs aimed specifically at reducing social isolation.

Not every commentator views the trend negatively, however. Sociologists studying the phenomenon note that living alone is not the same as being lonely: many people who live alone maintain dense social networks and describe their domestic independence as a deliberate and satisfying choice rather than a symptom of social breakdown. Whether policymakers should treat the rise of solo living chiefly as a housing challenge, a public health concern, or simply a neutral reflection of changing personal preferences remains an open question.

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the passage? Write TRUE, FALSE or NOT GIVEN.

1. In some Western European countries, people living alone constitute close to forty per cent of all households.
2. A century ago, most unmarried adults maintained their own independent households.
3. Elderly widows and widowers today are more likely to move in with their adult children than to live alone.
4. The average age of first marriage is higher in Western Europe than in any other region of the world.
5. Greater financial independence among women has reduced one of the traditional economic reasons for marriage.
6. Property developers have been legally required to increase the number of one-bedroom homes they build.
7. Research described in the passage indicates that everyone who lives alone suffers from chronic loneliness.
8. Some city governments have introduced schemes specifically designed to reduce social isolation.