Self-Checkout Kiosks Are Making Us More Lonely | Eater

"A cashier at this supermarket, Sharon Hechler, emphasizes the value of a "human, personal touch," and reporting frames employees as providers of the warm, low-stakes interactions that help older shoppers maintain emotional well-being. The growth of self-checkout, online ordering, and in-app logistics threatens these everyday exchanges, turning labor into a minimized, transaction-only interaction; some customers welcome the frictionless anonymity, but others worry it accelerates social isolation and erodes small acts of reciprocity when people are benefiting from another’s service." - Bettina Makalintal