WHY DO YOUNG PEOPLE WALK IN CIRCLES AT MALLS? THE RITUAL OF MODERN LOITERING

 If you’ve spent any time at a mall on a weekend evening, you’ve probably seen them: small groups of teenagers wandering in slow, looping circuits. They rarely seem to be buying anything. They’re not headed anywhere in particular. Yet they walk — again and again — around the same floors, same stores, same food court corners.

Why? What’s the point of walking in circles?

To the untrained eye, it may look like aimlessness. But look closer, and you’ll see something much more tender and human at work: a ritual of modern loitering, a quiet, low-stakes way for young people to claim space, explore identity, and practice presence in a world that often rushes them to be something or somewhere else.

Malls — with their air conditioning, food options, mirrors, and soft anonymity — offer an odd kind of public-private comfort. You’re out in the world, but sheltered. Visible, but unbothered. It’s no wonder malls have become informal town squares for Gen Z and Gen Alpha, especially in places where third spaces (spaces that aren’t home or school/work) are shrinking.

Walking in circles isn’t about movement; it’s about being. It’s a way to be together without needing a plan, to talk without sitting face to face, to linger in the soft hum of lights and possibility. It’s a kind of rehearsal for adulthood — watching how people act, trying on clothes you can’t afford yet, sharing secrets mid-walk, ducking into a store when the conversation gets too deep.

There’s also comfort in the loop. A repeated route makes room for rhythm, safety, and inside jokes. “Let’s do one more round,” someone says, and it means more than just walking. It means: Let’s not end this moment just yet.

In a hyper-scheduled, hyper-digital world, the mall loop is refreshingly analog. It’s time unstructured, yet full. And though adults may dismiss it as loitering, these circles are quiet acts of resistance — against productivity, pressure, and the notion that every minute must have purpose.

So next time you see teens walking circles at the mall, don’t ask what they’re doing. They’re doing what many of us wish we still could: wandering freely, growing quietly, and letting time stretch without guilt.