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Interventions Associated With Reduced Loneliness and Social Isolation in Older Adults: A Systematic Review and
Peter Hoang1, James A King2,3, Sarah Moore4
1Division of Geriatric Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
JAMA Network Open
|October 17, 2022
Summary
Interventions like animal therapy and technology show promise in reducing loneliness in older adults, particularly in long-term care settings. However, the evidence quality is low, and more research is needed to confirm these findings.
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Public Health
- Psychology
Background:
- Loneliness and social isolation are significant public health issues for older adults, linked to adverse health outcomes.
- Aging-related physical, cognitive, and psychosocial changes can exacerbate these issues.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate interventions aimed at reducing loneliness and social isolation in older adults.
- To synthesize evidence from randomized clinical trials on the effectiveness of various interventions.
Main Methods:
- A systematic review and meta-analysis of 70 peer-reviewed randomized clinical trials involving 8259 participants aged 65 and older.
- Searched multiple databases (OVID, CINAHL, CENTRAL, Embase, PsychINFO, Web of Science, Scopus) from inception to March 2020.
- Data extracted and analyzed using random-effects models to determine effect sizes for interventions.
Main Results:
- Most interventions demonstrated small effect sizes in reducing loneliness.
- Animal therapy and technological interventions (videoconferencing) in long-term care settings showed the largest effect sizes, though with high heterogeneity.
- Participant ages ranged from 55 to 100 years, with interventions including animal therapy, psychotherapy, exercise, and technology.
Conclusions:
- Animal therapy and technology interventions in long-term care show potential for loneliness reduction but require cautious interpretation due to high heterogeneity.
- The overall quality of evidence is very low, necessitating further research.
- Future studies should focus on social isolation measures in long-term care and identify key contextual factors for loneliness reduction.
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