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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 10, 2025

Experimental Paradigm for Measuring the Effects of Self-distancing in Young Children

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Published on: March 1, 2019

Family Availability, 'Kinlessness', COVID Stringency, and Loneliness in 26 Countries.

Christine A Mair¹, Bruno Arpino², Radoslaw Antczak³

¹Department of Sociology, Anthropology & Public Health, Center for Health, Equity & Aging, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Baltimore, MD, USA.

Research on Aging

|April 23, 2025

Summary

Older adults experienced more loneliness during COVID-19 lockdowns, particularly those without partners. Partnership status was a key factor in loneliness risk, even for "kinless" individuals.

Keywords:

COVID-19 cross-country kinlessness loneliness

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Area of Science:

Gerontology
Sociology
Public Health

Background:

Loneliness increased globally during the COVID-19 pandemic due to physical distancing measures.
Older adults with limited family availability faced potential heightened loneliness risks.
The pandemic context necessitated examining social interaction patterns in aging populations.

Purpose of the Study:

To analyze the association between family availability and loneliness in older Europeans during the COVID-19 pandemic.
To investigate how varying COVID-19 government response stringency influenced loneliness.
To identify specific demographic factors (partnership, kin availability) linked to loneliness.

Main Methods:

Utilized individual-level data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE).
Integrated country-level data from the Oxford Coronavirus Government Response Tracker (OxCGRT).
Analyzed loneliness outcomes for 34,943 older adults across 26 European countries.

Main Results:

More stringent COVID-19 policies were associated with increased loneliness.
Being unpartnered significantly increased loneliness risk.
"Kinless" older adults showed a similar loneliness risk to unpartnered individuals, highlighting the protective effect of partnership.

Conclusions:

Partnership status is a critical protective factor against loneliness in older adults, especially during pandemics.
Findings are relevant given the global trend of decreasing family ties among the elderly.
Recommendations are provided for future pandemic mitigation strategies to support vulnerable older populations.