Australians are becoming less connected, trusting and satisfied with life, but resilience remains – and tackling insecurity could help rebuild social cohesion.

Look around the world and you would think the world is burning and Australian society is burning with it.

Wars and conflict in the Middle East, Ukraine, Africa and most other continents, deep political polarisation, racial tension and a prolonged cost-of-living crisis stand out at the international level and combine with and propel homegrown racial hatred and violence towards Jewish, Muslim, Indigenous and Indian Australians (and almost everyone else).

This creates a toxic mix, bad for people’s sense of connection, belonging, empathy and trust in each other. In sum, bad for one of the political buzzwords of 2026: Australia’s social cohesion.

And while the Mapping Social Cohesion study points to a certain resilience in Australia’s social cohesion, there are clear indicators of a society under strain: financial pressures, partisan disaffection with the political system and negativity towards different immigrant and faith groups, and where racism and financial deprivation impact people’s sense of self, security and belonging.

In truth though, life goes on for most people and the external factors that swirl around us do not necessarily deeply penetrate our daily lives or how we interact in our communities and with our family, friends, neighbours and colleagues. In fact, that is where much of the resilience of our social cohesion resides.

However, if survey data are to be believed, we are witnessing some longer-term shifts in our social lives – for the worse.........

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