Loneliness is a universal human experience, yet it manifests in ways that are deeply personal and varied. What exactly is loneliness, and how can we better understand its dimensions and impact?
What is Loneliness?
Several studies describe a different definition of loneliness. As a discrepancy between the social interactions and relationships an individual desires and those they currently experience, which leads to a negative feeling of being alone. Here, however, being alone is not the same as feeling lonely. 1 It is described as a perceived lack of social contact, 2 or as the unavailability or unwillingness of others to engage in social and emotional experiences 3, or as a condition in which an individual can interact with others but does not do it. 4
Loneliness is a multidimensional phenomenon due to its variations in intensity, causes, and circumstances. 5 Therefore, it can be distinguished between three types of loneliness: emotional loneliness, social loneliness and collective loneliness.
Emotional loneliness “results from the lack of a close, intimate attachment to another person”. Someone, like a spouse or best friend, whom one can rely on for emotional support during hard times and validates one’s values.
Social loneliness is the absence of quality relationships with family or a group of friends who share the same interests and activities. 6
Collective loneliness pertains to an individual’s sense of disconnection from their valued social identities or “active network” (e.g., group, school, team, or national identity), where one can engage with like-minded others, even if only at a distance, within the broader social context. 7
How to measure Loneliness?
Since loneliness is a subjective experience, its measurement can be challenging. It cannot be directly observed, and there are no objective indicators to assess it. As a result, loneliness is typically measured through self-reported methods, such as surveys and questionnaires. There are two types of measuring loneliness: direct and indirect.
Direct Measures: People are asked directly if they are feeling lonely in a certain period of time.
Indirect Measures: People are asked several questions but without using words like lonely or loneliness. The questions are about feelings and experiences related to loneliness. Like the wish to have someone to rely on or talk to about private topics.
Over the time several scales have been developed for measuring loneliness. The two most known ones are the “University of California Los Angeles Loneliness Scale” created by Russell and Peplau and the and the “De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale” created by De Jong Gierveld and Kamphuis. 8
University of California Los Angeles Loneliness Scale (UCLA Loneliness Scale)
The survey consists of 20 statements, and respondents are required to indicate how frequently each statement applies to them. O: I often feel this way, S: I sometimes feel this way, R: I rarely feel this way, N: I never feel this way. 9
De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale
The original survey consists of eleven statements, in 2000 they created a shortened version with only six statements. Three of the statements are positively formulated and the other three are negatively formulated. The statements need to be answered with “no”, “more or less” or “yes”. This survey also considers the difference between emotional loneliness and social loneliness. 8
6 questions:
- I experience a general sense of emptiness.
- I miss having people around.
- I often feel rejected.
- There are plenty of people I can rely on when I have problems.
- There are many people I can trust completely.
- There are enough people I feel close to.
What is Social isolation?
Loneliness and social isolation are frequently discussed in tandem or treated as synonymous concepts. 2 However, loneliness describes a subjective experience, whereas social isolation is an objective situation where someone is alone or lacks meaningful social interactions. 10 A person who has little contact to the family, friends or other people of a community is socially isolated. 11
Since belonging is seen as a fundamental human motivation. 12 A core aspect shared by most individuals is the need for love, acceptance, and understanding, which often motivates significant efforts to avoid experiencing loneliness.
Sources:
[1] L. A. Peplau and D. Perlman, “Loneliness,” in Encyclopedia of Mental Health, H. S. Friedman, Ed., vol. 1, San Diego: Academic Press, 1998, pp. 571–581.
[2] G. C. Wenger, The Supportive Network: Coping with Old Age, 1st ed. Allen and Unwin, London, 1984
[3] K. S. Rook, “Research on social support, loneliness, and social isolation: Toward an integration,” Review of Personality & Social Psychology, vol. 5, pp. 239–264, 1984.
[4] S. Shalev, “On loneliness and alienation,” Isr. J. Psychiatry Rel. Sci., vol. 5, pp. 236–245, 1988.
[5] L. M. Heinrich, E. Gullone und School of Psychology, Psychiatry, and Psychological Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing, and Health Sciences, Monash University, VIC 3800, Australia, „The clinical significance of loneliness: A literature review“, 2006. doi: 10.1016/j.cpr.2006.04.002.
[6] R. S. Weiss, Loneliness: the experience of emotional and social isolation. 1974. [Online]. Verfügbar unter: http://psycnet.apa.org/record/1974-22306-000
[7] S. Cacioppo, A. J. Grippo, S. London, L. Goossens und J. T. Cacioppo, „Loneliness: Clinical Import and Interventions“, The Author(s), 2015. doi: 10.1177/1745691615570616.
[8] S. V. Schnepf, B. D’Hombres und C. Mauri, Hrsg., Loneliness in Europe. 2024. doi: 10.1007/978-3-031-66582-0.
[9] D. W. Russell, L. A. Peplau, Iowa State University, University of California, Los Angeles und Letitia Anne Peplau, „Developing a Measure of Loneliness“, Journal Of Personality Assessment, Juli 1978, doi: 10.1207/s15327752jpa4203_11.
[10] J. de Jong Gierveld, “Developing and testing a model of loneliness,” J. Personal. Soc. Psychol., vol. 53, pp. 119–128, 1987.
[11] C. Victor, S. Scambler, J. Bond und A. Bowling, „Being alone in later life: loneliness, social isolation and living alone“, Reviews in Clinical Gerontology, Bd. 10, Nr. 4, S. 407–417, Nov. 2000, doi: 10.1017/s0959259800104101.[12] Baumeister, Roy F. and Leary, Mark R., “The Need to Belong: Desire for Interpersonal Attachments as a Fundamental Human Motivation”, Psychological Bulletin 1995, Vol. 117, No. 3, 497-529