Interaction and Loneliness: A Dimensional Analysis of the Social Isolation of a Sample of Older Southern Adults

Abstract

This study, using data drawn from a sample of 1,879 older Mississippians, demonstrates that social isolation is both complex and multidimensional in nature. Interaction with relatives, feelings of loneliness, and interaction with friends and neighbors composed the three primary dimensions underlying the varying patterns of social isolation found among study respondents. Study findings suggest that certain groups of older people are at greater risk than others of experiencing the potentially harmful effects of social isolation and that human service practitioners must consider the various dimensions of social isolation when designing interven tive strategies that attempt to combat the causes or consequences of this psychosocial phenomenon.