Could contact centres help tackle Australia’s loneliness epidemic?

Loneliness costs the Australian economy an estimated $2.7 billion each year in healthcare, social services and lost productivity. While it is often framed as a community or health issue, new research from the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) argues that the solution could start somewhere unexpected: the humble contact centre.

A new whitepaper from QUT’s Centre for Future Enterprise, More than a phone call: Using everyday interactions to detect and respond to loneliness, explores how contact centres can evolve their service models to meet rising consumer expectations, reduce churn and create social impact through human-centred design.

Dr Nadine Ostern, Cisco Chair in Trusted Retail at QUT and lead author of the paper, said the research reframes loneliness as both a social and organisational challenge.

“This whitepaper encourages us to see loneliness differently: not as a marginal issue, but as a challenge that organisations can play a role in addressing,” Dr Ostern said.

“It shows how businesses, service providers and technology partners are uniquely positioned to intervene, not by replacing human connection, but by enabling it where it matters.”

Developed with Anglicare Southern Queensland, which receives more than 30,000 calls each month from older Queenslanders, and supported by Cisco’s National Industry Innovation Network (NIIN), the paper highlights how service interactions can become meaningful touchpoints for connection.

Turning inefficiencies into insights

The research found that loneliness often shows up subtly in call patterns — through repeated, extended or low-need interactions. What might seem like inefficiency may actually be a sign of unmet emotional need.

Among the key findings:

• Women and Australians aged over 55 are disproportionately affected by loneliness.
• Without clear frameworks, frontline staff can feel emotionally burdened, leading to fatigue and eroded trust.
• Organisations that recognise and respond to these cues can strengthen loyalty, resilience and wellbeing across their workforce and customer base.

Five shifts for a new model of care

The whitepaper identifies five key shifts for contact centres to embrace, from reactive problem-solving to proactive engagement, and from siloed operations to integrated, data-driven systems. It also introduces an “intervention spectrum” — human, augmented and automated — that allows organisations to scale empathetic responses without overwhelming staff.

Dr Ostern said the findings point to a broader transformation underway in customer experience.

“At the heart of this work lies a question that also drives our research: how do we ensure that technology serves human good? In addressing loneliness, this means designing systems that are not only efficient but also attentive to human needs,” she said.

“When organisations respond to subtle emotional cues, they show a deeper commitment to care. Contact centres, when reimagined as hubs of empathy, can build trust and belonging in ways that go far beyond the transaction.”

The whitepaper was co-authored by Dr Shannon Colville, Associate Professor Wasana Bandara and Dr Sophie Coulon from QUT, and Professor Catherine Haslam from the University of Queensland, with contributions from Anglicare Southern Queensland.

Access the whitepaper, More than a phone call: Using everyday interactions to detect and respond to loneliness here.