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Updated: Aug 4, 2025

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Published on: September 30, 2020
Fluctuations in loneliness due to changes in frequency of social interactions among older adults: a weekly based
R Awad1, S G Shamay-Tsoory2, Y Palgi1
1Department of Gerontology, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.
Objectives:
Loneliness functionally varies and is determined by the degree of interaction with others. We examined weekly fluctuations in reported loneliness as a function of frequency of social interactions in old age. We hypothesized that emotional and social components of loneliness would be related to different types of social relationships.
Design:
Participants reported their feeling of loneliness and their social interaction quantity (frequency of meetings) via a weekly based diary, over 6 weeks.
Setting:
Diary study.
Participants:
The study included 55 older adults with different dwelling arrangements (M = 73.4, SD = 6.97).
Measurements:
Measures of Loneliness (the De Jong-Gierveld Loneliness Scale), Social Interaction and Contact, and sociodemographic parameters were used.
Results:
Social and emotional loneliness fluctuated over the course of the 6-week study. Frequency of meeting friends was related to emotional loneliness and total feelings of loneliness. Frequency of meeting close/trusted figures was related to emotional loneliness which appeared the following week. Other variables were not associated with either changes in loneliness or its dimensions.
Conclusions:
Loneliness in old age is changeable. The emotional component of loneliness seems to be dominant in determining overall feelings of loneliness and is more sensitive to externally chosen social interaction.
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