Risk Factors For Loneliness Research Articles

Causal conditions for loneliness: a set-theoretic analysis on an adult sample in the UK

While age has been identified as a risk factor for loneliness, whether it is a necessary or sufficient condition for loneliness has never been examined. This is the first study that applies fuzzy-set QCA, a special type of set-theoretic method, to discover the necessary and sufficient causal conditions for loneliness, respectively, among adults in the UK, analysing the data collected from the UK sample of Round 6 of the European Social Survey (ESS, 2012, n = 2163). It firstly examines the configurations of five conditions: being female, old age, not living with spouse/partner, bad health, and not being frequently social with others. Gender was found neither a necessary nor a sufficient condition for loneliness, and old age was close to being a necessary condition and became necessary when united with any of the other conditions; the configuration of not living with spouse/partner and not healthy and not frequently social with others is a sufficient condition. Robustness of results was tested with two different conditions (a limiting illness and a confidante), and a separate analysis on the absence of loneliness was conducted. The effect of the unbalanced distribution of cases across different values of the outcome was highlighted as a source of uncertainty, and the results on the absence of loneliness are different from those on its presence.

The association between social capital and loneliness in different age groups: a population-based study in Western Finland.

BackgroundPrevious studies of loneliness have largely focused on establishing risk factors in specific age groups such as in later life or in young people. Researchers have paid less attention to the link between social capital and loneliness across different age groups. The aim of this study was to examine the association between social capital and experienced loneliness in different age groups in a Finnish setting.MethodsThe data originates from a population-based cross-sectional survey conducted among 4618 people aged 15–80 in Western Finland in 2011. The response rate was 46.2 %. The association between social capital, measured by frequency of social contacts, participation in organisational activities, trust and sense of belonging to the neighbourhood and loneliness was tested by logistic regression analyses stratified by four age groups.ResultsFrequent loneliness (defined as experienced often or sometimes) was higher among younger people (39.5 %) compared to older people (27.3 %). Low levels of trust were linked to loneliness in all four age groups. The association between other aspects of social capital and loneliness varied across age groups.ConclusionsFrequent loneliness is common among the general adult population and could be seen as a public health issue. Our findings imply that low social capital, especially in terms of low trust, may be a risk factor for loneliness. However, further research is needed to assess the influence of poor health and reverse causality as explanations for the findings.

Social isolation, loneliness and health in old age: a scoping review.

The health and well-being consequences of social isolation and loneliness in old age are increasingly being recognised. The purpose of this scoping review was to take stock of the available evidence and to highlight gaps and areas for future research. We searched nine databases for empirical papers investigating the impact of social isolation and/or loneliness on a range of health outcomes in old age. Our search, conducted between July and September 2013 yielded 11,736 articles, of which 128 items from 15 countries were included in the scoping review. Papers were reviewed, with a focus on the definitions and measurements of the two concepts, associations and causal mechanisms, differences across population groups and interventions. The evidence is largely US-focused, and loneliness is more researched than social isolation. A recent trend is the investigation of the comparative effects of social isolation and loneliness. Depression and cardiovascular health are the most often researched outcomes, followed by well-being. Almost all (but two) studies found a detrimental effect of isolation or loneliness on health. However, causal links and mechanisms are difficult to demonstrate, and further investigation is warranted. We found a paucity of research focusing on at-risk sub-groups and in the area of interventions. Future research should aim to better link the evidence on the risk factors for loneliness and social isolation and the evidence on their impact on health.

Dyadic perspectives on marital quality and loneliness in later life

Previous research on married couples has indicated that loneliness, an unrealized desire for close relationships, can affect even partnered adults. In addition to individual perceptions of the marital relationship, partner perceptions of the relationship might also heighten married adults’ experiences of loneliness. I employed a dyadic approach derived from the emotion-in-relationships model to examine the extent to which individual and partner reports of four dimensions of relationship quality are risk factors for loneliness among married older adults. Using structural equation modeling with dyadic data from 779 opposite-sex couples in the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (2010–2011), I found that spouses’ reports of positive and negative relationship quality were associated with loneliness beyond individuals’ reports. For positive relationship quality, a partner’s report had an effect equal to one’s own report. For negative relationship quality, one’s own and one’s partner’s perceptions operated in opposite ways. There were no differences between husbands and wives, and neither partner’s reports of shared marital activities or sexual relationship quality were associated with loneliness. Overall, results suggest that for married older persons, dyadic approaches to therapy might most effectively alleviate loneliness.

Low Self-Esteem as a Risk Factor for Loneliness in Adolescence: Perceived - but not Actual - Social Acceptance as an Underlying Mechanism

Low self-esteem has been shown to relate to concurrent and later feelings of loneliness in adolescence. However, it remains unclear why low self-esteem puts adolescents at risk for experiencing loneliness. Further, longitudinal research on the direction of effects between loneliness and self-esteem is virtually non-existent. The present study aims to fill these gaps in the literature. First, the direction of effects between loneliness and self-esteem was investigated in two independent longitudinal studies: a five-wave study sampling Dutch adolescents (M age = 15.22 years at T1; 47 % female; N = 428) and a three-wave study sampling Belgian adolescents (M age = 14.95 years at T1; 63 % female; N = 882). Second, the underlying role of social acceptance was investigated in the latter sample by applying a multi-method approach that included actual (i.e., peer-reported) and perceived (i.e., self-reported) social acceptance. Results indicated that self-esteem and loneliness influenced one another in a reciprocal manner. Furthermore, the dominant path from self-esteem to loneliness was partially mediated by perceived--but not actual--social acceptance. The importance of distinguishing actual from perceived social acceptance is discussed, and suggestions for future research are outlined.

Identifying Living Arrangements That Heighten Risk for Loneliness in Later Life

Studies have identified living alone as a risk factor for loneliness in later life without examining whether other living arrangements might also pose risk. The authors used data from a national sample of adults aged 57 and older to estimate associations between a variety of living arrangements and loneliness. In contrast to respondents living with a spouse/partner, respondents who were living alone, living with children without a spouse/partner, and living with other relatives or friends without a spouse/partner reported more loneliness. Living alone was associated with greater loneliness among men than women, but living with children without a spouse/partner was associated with greater loneliness among women. Results suggest the importance for interventions aimed at reducing loneliness to target adults who live alone, as well as adults who live with others besides intimate partners, and to consider gender differences in the propensity for particular types of living arrangements to affect loneliness.

The prevalence of and risk factors for loneliness among older people in China

ABSTRACTCompared with the many studies in western countries, research on the prevalence of and risk factors for loneliness amongst older people in China is sparse. This paper reviews the current cross-national literature on loneliness and, using data from two national surveys undertaken in 1992 and 2000, assesses the prevalence of loneliness amongst older people in China and explores the factors that raise their vulnerability to the negative feeling. The reported prevalence of loneliness was 15.6 per cent in 1992 and 29.6 per cent in 2000. We suggest that part of the differential is accounted for by the differences in the methodologies of the two surveys and in the questions used to assess loneliness. The evidence from both surveys suggests that loneliness was relatively prevalent among those aged 65 or more years, females and those living in rural areas, and that these variations had greater amplitude in 2000. As in western countries, increased age, being widowed or divorced, and poor self-rated health were significantly associated with old-age loneliness in China at the two dates. Two factors positively related to loneliness were found that are specific to the Chinese context, however: living in a rural (as opposed to urban) area, and thinking that one's children are not filial. To develop our understanding of loneliness among older people in China and other non-western countries, it will be necessary to construct more rigorous and comparable measurements of loneliness and to undertake longitudinal studies of social relationships.

The prevalence of, and risk factors for, loneliness in later life: a survey of older people in Great Britain

This study examines the prevalence of loneliness amongst older people in Great Britain, and makes comparisons with the findings of studies undertaken during the last five decades. In addition, the risk factors for loneliness are examined using a conceptual model of vulnerability and protective factors derived from a model of depression. Loneliness was measured using a self-rating scale, and measures of socio-demographic status and health/social resources were included. Interviews were undertaken with 999 people aged 65 or more years living in their own homes, and the sample was broadly representative of the population in 2001. Among them the prevalence of ‘severe loneliness’ was seven per cent, indicating little change over five decades. Six independent vulnerability factors for loneliness were identified: marital status, increases in loneliness over the previous decade, increases in time alone over the previous decade; elevated mental morbidity; poor current health; and poorer health in old age than expected. Advanced age and possession of post-basic education were independently protective of loneliness. From this evidence we propose that there are three loneliness pathways in later life: continuation of a long-established attribute, late-onset loneliness, and decreasing loneliness. Confirmation of the different trajectories suggests that policies and interventions should reflect the variability of loneliness in later life, for undifferentiated responses may be neither appropriate nor effective.