Demographic change in Germany is leading to a fundamental shift in attitudes. More and more people are living alone in old age. And because they remain childless and childless, they are increasingly dependent on outside help as well as personal relationships and contacts if they do not want to be alone. In this situation, friends are becoming increasingly important in life (2002: 83% - 2010: 92%), while at the same time professional and work relationships (2002: 74% - 2010: 72%) and religious and church affiliations (2002: 31% - 2010: 24%) are becoming less important. This is the result of representative studies comparing the years 2002 and 2010, in which the BAT Foundation for Future Studies surveyed 2,000 people aged 14 and over across Germany about their attitudes to life.
"In a society of longevity, personal provision for the future is becoming a top priority for generations," says Prof Dr Horst W. Opaschowski, Scientific Director of the Foundation for Future Studies. "In addition to caring for one's own health and the well-being of the family, the systematic cultivation of friendships is moving to the centre of life." Everyone agrees on this - across all professional, social and age groups.

"Social convoys": the new companions of life

Against the backdrop of constantly increasing life expectancy, it is no longer just a question of maintaining material prosperity for German citizens. Ensuring social well-being into old age is becoming just as important. Professor Opaschowski: "Simply increasing the standard of living is no longer the most desirable goal in life. Quality of life is becoming the guarantor of a good life between happiness and security." For 92 per cent of the population and 95 per cent of singles, friends are an essential part of their personal quality of life, stating: "Friends are important for me to be happy and satisfied." For them, if you want to be happy, you have to have friends.
The trend that emerged in the 1980s is increasingly becoming a reality: for three quarters of the population (74% - singles: 80% - young adults: 90%), friends are "a kind of second family" - for families a life-enriching addition, but for those living alone an equivalent family substitute.
Opaschowski: "Even if you can become a 'friend' on the internet with just a click: Virtual relationships cannot replace real friendships. Friends are like social convoys, helpful companions in life - especially when they are intergenerational." The reason for this is: "I consciously cultivate intergenerational contacts and don't just have friends of the same age." Friendship between the generations is becoming a new quality of relationship, even over long distances.
"Elective relationships" and "elective families" are experiencing a renaissance. Demographic change is forcing a rethink. Because many people are without children and grandchildren in old age, "they should take care of non-related families of choice at an early stage" - according to the specific recommendation of 55 per cent of the population in Germany. Professor Opaschowski: "This expanded understanding of family is like a kind of adoption: grandchildren, children and family members without children are taken into families of choice as if by adoption." These can be house or building communities. A new era of intergenerational housing is beginning. It will fundamentally change urban and residential construction in the future: "Everyone under one roof - but everyone for themselves." You can build on friends!