Increasing evidence suggests that perceived social isolation or loneliness is a major risk factor for physical and mental illness in later life. This review assesses the status of research on loneliness and health in older adults. Key concepts and definitions of loneliness are identified, and the prevalence, correlates, and health effects of loneliness in older individuals are reviewed. Theoret...

BACKGROUND Social networks and support have been proposed as cognitively protective in old age. As studies often consider these social factors in isolation the question of which characteristics of the social environment are beneficial remains. OBJECTIVE The current study examined associations between measures of social networks (including contact with friends/family, marital status and living...

spiritual identity is conceptualized as defining and identification of oneself based on spirituality and spiritual experiences. this study, in a framework of a causal model, investigated the mediating role of spiritual identity between family communication orientations and loneliness aspects. participants, four hundred undergraduate shiraz university students (268 girls and 132 boys) were parti...

BACKGROUND This study evaluates the outcomes of an Internet-at-home intervention experiment that intended to decrease loneliness among chronically ill and physically handicapped older adults through introducing them to the use of an electronic communication facility. METHOD To determine the effectiveness of the experiment in terms of reducing loneliness, 15 older adults were interviewed three...

Antibody response to the influenza immunization was investigated in 83 1st-semester healthy university freshmen. Elevated levels of loneliness throughout the semester and small social networks were independently associated with poorer antibody response to 1 component of the vaccine. Those with both high levels of loneliness and a small social network had the lowest antibody response. Loneliness...

To live with feelings of loneliness has negative implications for quality of life, health and survival. This study aimed to examine changes in loneliness among older people, both with regard to prevalence rates, and socio-demographic, social and health-related correlates of loneliness. This study had a repeated cross-sectional design and was based on the nationally representative Swedish Panel ...

Utilizing the stress process and life course perspectives, we investigated the influence of non-spousal social support on the associations between marital quality, physical disability, and loneliness among married older adults. Using data from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP), we found that the association between physical disability and loneliness was partially accou...

Adolescents are particularly susceptible to feelings of loneliness and social relationships are therefore an important part of their development. The aim of the present study is to explore the patterns of adolescents' use of Social Network Sites, e.g. Facebook, in relation to friendships, focusing on the differences between teenagers with a high and low level of loneliness. Participants (N=988)...