Lecture 5: Loneliness

Question 1

loneliness=

Answer 1

a discrepancy between an individual’s preferred and actual social relations.

(different from social isolation and solitude)

Question 2

our survival depends on our collective ability

Answer 2

dus loneliness can be adaptive. the desire for interpersonal attachments is a fundamental human motivation

Question 3

transient healthy loneliness

Answer 3

loneliness -> motivation to reconnect -> social behaviour

Question 4

experiment about believing another one likes you

Answer 4

behaviours make the beliefs come true (verteld worden dat iemand je niet aardig vindt -> diegene vond hen na het experiment oprecht niet aardig)

Question 5

kijken naar social cognition model on loneliness

Answer 5

oke

Question 6

cognitive biases

Answer 6

• interpretation bias: interpret ambiguous or neutral information in a way that aligns with pre-existing beliefs, expectations or emotions (about meaning).
• attribution bias: explaining causes in a way that reflects certain patterns (about responsibility)

Question 7

loneliness interventions

Answer 7

• improving social skills
• enhancing social support
• increasing opportunities for social contact
• addressing maladaptive social cognition -> alleen deze was effectief
  … but only moderate effectiveness
  … still elevated loneliness post intervention

Question 8

wat is lastig aan deze interventies

Answer 8

complexity and diversity often overlooked: viewing loneliness as a unidimensional construct, targeting only one contributing factor

Question 9

waar was de pilot intervention op gericht

Answer 9

• more personalized
• more maintaining factors (challenging maladaptive thoughts, practising interpersonal skills)

Question 10

3 types of loneliness

Answer 10

1. emotional (absence of a close intimate relationship or attachment for support and companionship)
2. social (lack of a wider social network or group of friends that provide a sense of belonging and connectedness, linked to feeling excluded or an outsider)
3. collective (sense of isolation from a shared identity or belonging to a larger community or group with shared values, goals or purpose)

Question 11

voorbeelden van situaties bij elke soort loneliness

Answer 11

• emotional: losing spouse :(
• social: moving to a new city
• collective: immigrants (not feeling connected with home culture, struggling to integrate in new one)

Question 12

Better alignment of loneliness interventions with specific loneliness subtypes. But first we need research on underlying resilience and
vulnerability factors of loneliness subtypes may identify better targets for effective interventions

Answer 12

oke

Question 13

loneliness vulnerability and resilience factors relate differently to subtypes:

Answer 13

emotional loneliness: symptoms of depression and anxiety (cognitive behavioural therapy)
social loneliness: less secure attachment (compassion focused therapy)

Question 14

conclusions

Answer 14

• Loneliness is prevalent and can have severe consequences
• Lonely individuals are caught in vicious cognitive circles
• Loneliness is multifaceted
• CBT based interventions seems most effective, although elevated levels of loneliness often persist after treatment
• Research on vulnerability and resilience factors for specific subtypes of loneliness may identify effective targets for interventions