Dive a Little Deeper
We first created the Golden Gate Movement to combat isolation and provide more social opportunities for high school students that felt alone or unwelcome in their own school. As the movement has grown to provide for grades K-12, so have our resources, allowing us to conduct first-hand research on the issues your students struggle with on a daily basis.
With our findings, we will continue to improve our curriculum, enhance our prosocial approach, and continue searching for the best possible way to spread kindness and inclusion across the globe.
We invite you to join us as we dive deeper into the concerns and challenges of the modern-day student, in hopes that you, too, will see the tremendous value in bringing The Golden Gate Movement to your school.
Isolation is a Growing Concern
“We get sick alone, and we get well together.”
– Neurosurgeon Dr. James Doty
“Research has shown that the more connected we are socially, the longer we will live and the faster we will recover when we get ill. In truth, isolation and loneliness puts us at a great risk for early disease and death than smoking. Authentic social connection has a profound effect on your mental health – it even exceeds the value of exercise and ideal body weight on your physical health. It makes you feel good. Social connection triggers the same reward centers in your brain that are triggered when people do drugs, or drink alcohol, or eat chocolate. In other words, we get sick alone, and we get well together.”
– Neurosurgeon Dr. James Doty / Into the Magic Shop
“People who feel more connected to others have lower levels of anxiety and depression. Moreover, studies show they also have higher self-esteem, greater empathy for others, are more trusting and cooperative and, as a consequence, others are more open to trusting and cooperating with them. Social connectedness generates a positive feedback loop of social, emotional and physical well-being. Societal decline in social connectedness may help to explain recent increases in reports of loneliness, isolation and alienation, and may be why loneliness has become a leading reason people seek psychological counseling. Sociological research has revealed that more than 25 percent of Americans had no one to confide in. They lacked a close friend with whom they felt comfortable sharing a personal problem.”
– PhD. Emma Seppala / The Happiness Track
“Social connectedness generates a positive feedback loop of social, emotional and physical well-being.”
– PhD. Emma Seppala