In Case You Haven't Heard…

Abstract

Middle‐aged adults in the U.S. tend to report significantly higher levels of loneliness than their European counterparts, possibly due in part to weaker family ties and greater income inequality, according to research published in the journal American Psychologist, an American Psychological Association news release stated. “Our research illustrates that people feel lonelier in some countries than in others during middle age,” said lead author Frank Infurna, Ph.D., an associate professor of psychology at Arizona State University. “It also sheds light on reasons this may be occurring and how governments can address it with better policies.” Considering the increased public health focus in the United States, as evidenced by the U.S. Surgeon General's 2023 advisory on the epidemic of loneliness and isolation, and abroad, as countries such as the United Kingdom and Japan have appointed ministers to address the problem, the researchers explored how loneliness has historically changed over time and how it differs across countries. Infurna and his colleagues examined data from ongoing, nationally representative longitudinal surveys from the United States and 13 European countries, with more than 53,000 participants from three different generations: (the ‘Silent Generation,’ ‘Baby Boomers’ and ‘Generation X.’ Data were collected from 2002 to 2020 and only included responses given when participants were between the ages of 45 and 65.