The robust reciprocal relationship between loneliness and depressive symptoms among the general population: Evidence from a quantitative analysis of 37 studies

The role of loneliness in mediating the relationship between financial strain and mental health: Exploring gender differences in a UK longitudinal study

OBJECTIVES

This study explores the association between financial strain and loneliness over time, investigates loneliness as a mediator in the relationship between financial strain and mental health, and examines the influence of gender.

STUDY DESIGN

Longitudinal study.

METHODS

Using data from six waves (2017-2023) of the UK Household Longitudinal Study (UKHLS), which includes 34,535 participants (154,316 person-years), this study employs fixed-effects regression models.

RESULTS

Financial strain is significantly associated with increased loneliness over time (b = .155, p < .001). Loneliness partially mediates the relationship between financial strain and mental health, accounting for approximately 15 % of the effect. Notably, the relationship between loneliness and mental health is moderated by gender (b = .120, p < .001), with women experiencing more severe negative effects.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings suggest that alleviating financial strain could reduce loneliness and its detrimental effects on mental health. Addressing financial and social stressors is essential for public health strategies. Implementing gender-sensitive approaches is critical for addressing specific vulnerabilities, particularly among women.

Physical frailty in chilean older persons: The role of social relationships, multimorbidity, and mental health

AIMS

the objective of this study is to analyze the mediating role of loneliness, social isolation, and depressive symptoms in the relationship between multimorbidity and physical frailty among Chilean older adults living in the community, following the frailty model proposed by Gobbens.

METHODS

A total of 2132 older people were studied through a cross-sectional analysis of data from a population-based survey, using hierarchical linear regression and mediations with Hayes' method. Variables of Gobbens' model guided the data analysis.

RESULTS

Regression analysis revealed significant associations between physical frailty and age, education, self-perceived economic status, physical activity, social relationships, mental health, and multimorbidity. Mediation analysis confirmed that loneliness, social isolation, and depressive symptoms are partial mediators in the relationship between multimorbidity and frailty.

CONCLUSIONS

Multimorbidity contributes significantly to physical frailty. Loneliness and social isolation show weaker associations with frailty, whereas depressive symptoms have a more substantial mediating role. These results underscore the need to integrate these factors into frailty interventions for older people.

Loneliness is associated with different structural brain changes in schizophrenia spectrum disorders and major depression

BACKGROUND

Loneliness, distress from having fewer social contacts than desired, has been recognized as a significant public health crisis. Although a substantial body of research has established connections between loneliness and various forms of psychopathology, our understanding of the neural underpinnings of loneliness in schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSD) and major depressive disorder (MDD) remains limited.

METHODS

In this study, structural magnetic resonance imaging (sMRI) data were collected from 57 SSD and 45 MDD patients as well as 41 healthy controls (HC). Loneliness was measured with the German version of the University of California, Los Angeles Loneliness Scale (UCLA-LS). We used FreeSurfer v7.2 for automated parcellation of cortical regions.

RESULTS

SSD patients showed reduced cortical volume and thickness in fronto-parietal and temporal regions when compared to HC (p < 0.05, Benjamini-Hochberg (BH) corr.). In SSD, volume of the right superior temporal gyrus was associated with UCLA-LS total score (p = 0.030; BH corr.). MDD patients showed reduced cortical volume and thickness in fronto-parietal regions (p < 0.05, BH corr.). In MDD, cortical thickness of the right superior parietal cortex was associated with UCLA-LS total score (p = 0.038; BH corr.).

CONCLUSION

Our study suggests a different neural signature of loneliness in patients with SSD and MDD, comprising temporal and parietal regions responsible for social and attentive processing. Identifying neurobiological mechanisms underlying loneliness is critical for understanding its role in severe mental illnesses and identifying potential therapeutic targets.

Examining the relationships between self-stigma, loneliness, depressive symptoms, and suicidal ideation among people with bipolar disorder

People diagnosed with bipolar disorder (BD) commonly experience self-stigma, which negatively affects various health outcomes. The aim of the present study was to elucidate the mechanisms through which self-stigma may contribute to suicidality among bipolar patients by investigating the mediating roles of loneliness and depressive symptoms. A total of 140 patients with BD were cross-sectionally assessed with self-report scales measuring self-stigma, loneliness, depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation, and with a clinician-rated scale evaluating overall psychopathology. Path analysis was used to analyze the data. Self-stigma was directly related to more severe loneliness, depressive symptoms and suicidal thoughts. There were also significant direct effects of loneliness on depressive symptoms and depressive symptoms on suicidal ideation. The direct effect of loneliness on suicidality was non-significant. The following indirect effects on suicidal ideation were found: from self-stigma via depressive symptoms, from loneliness via depressive symptoms and a sequential effect from self-stigma through loneliness and depressive symptoms. Our findings clearly indicate that interventions aiming to reduce the risk of suicide among people with BD should be comprehensive and take into account not only psychiatric symptoms, but also social context and the psychological aspects of living with this diagnosis.

Loneliness, Internalizing and Externalizing Problems, and Suicidal Ideation Among Chinese Adolescents: A Longitudinal Mediation Analysis

PURPOSE

Research indicates that loneliness and emotional and behavioral problems increase the risk of suicidal ideation in adolescents, but less is known about the distinct contributions of these problems. This study aimed to distinguish the pathways through which loneliness, internalizing problems, and externalizing problems contribute to suicidal ideation in Chinese adolescents.

METHODS

We did a longitudinal mediation analysis with data collected at 3 time points (2021.05, 2021.10, and 2022.05) from 28 Taizhou high schools. Loneliness and suicidal ideation were assessed using the UCLA 3-Item Loneliness Scale and one suicide item from the Children's Depression Inventory, respectively. The Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire assessed internalizing (emotional and peer problems) and externalizing problems (conduct and hyperactivity problems). Structural equation modeling was used to construct complete longitudinal path models.

RESULTS

Using data from 2,190 adolescents in junior and senior high schools, we found that loneliness, internalizing problems, and externalizing problems separately contributed to subsequent higher levels of suicidal ideation. Most notably, loneliness predicted worse subsequent internalizing problems (β = 0.279, p < .001) and externalizing problems (β = 0.159, p < .001), which in turn predicted more severe suicidal ideation (β = 0.019, p < .001; β = 0.018, p < .001). Loneliness also partially mediated the association between internalizing or externalizing problems and suicidal ideation.

DISCUSSION

Loneliness, internalizing problems, and externalizing problems were strongly intertwined with suicidal ideation in adolescents. Public health initiatives could reduce loneliness and emotional and behavioral problems by implementing multifaceted interventions, thereby breaking the vicious circle and protecting against the development of suicidal ideation.

Clinical and lifestyle predictors of loneliness: A two-year longitudinal study

BACKGROUND

While loneliness is a global public health problem, the literature lacks studies assessing loneliness predictors in low- and middle-income countries. Therefore, we aimed to analyze clinical and lifestyle predictors of loneliness.

METHODS

We conducted a 2-year longitudinal study in Brazil based on a snowball sample and online surveys (baseline: May 6 to June 6, 2020). We assessed clinical and lifestyle predictors of loneliness using multiple regression models. The analyses were adjusted for several sociodemographic variables and weighted for attrition and sampling procedures.

RESULTS

The study included a nationwide sample of 473 participants (18-75 years; 87.1% females). After adjusting for sociodemographic factors, we identified as risk factors: depressive symptoms (RR: 1.214; 95%CI: 1.08-1.36; p = 0.001), anxiety symptoms (RR:1.191; 95%CI: 1.04-1.35; p = 0.007), alcohol abuse (RR: 1.579; 95%CI: 1.32-1.88; p < 0.001), and cannabis use (RR: 1.750; 95%CI: 1.25-2.39; p < 0.001). More than 150 min/week of physical activity (RR: 0.177; 95%CI: 0.07-0.34; p < 0.001) and good/excellent quality of family relationships (RR: 0.73; 95%CI: 0.60-0.87; p < 0.001) and sleep (RR: 0.483; 95%CI: 0.39-0.59; p < 0.001) were protective factors.

CONCLUSION

Several clinical factors (depression, anxiety, alcohol, and cannabis) have been identified as risk factors for loneliness, while lifestyle factors (physical activity, better quality of sleep, and family relationships) have been associated with a lower incidence of loneliness. Addressing clinical and lifestyle factors may therefore be essential to preventing loneliness.

The association between perceived social functioning and heart rate variability is mediated by subclinical depressive symptomatology and moderated by gender

Chronic loneliness and low perceived social support have been recognized as risk factors for both mental and cardiovascular disorders. It has been proposed that their link to psychophysiological problems may involve changes in parasympathetic activity. However, the exact underlying psychopathological mechanisms and the moderating effects of gender are still not thoroughly examined. Thus, the present study investigated associations between perceived social functioning and resting vagal tone in the context of potential cognitive and subclinical mediators and gender differences. Three hundred twenty-five young adults (aged 18-35, 180 women) underwent an electrocardiogram measurement of 6-minute resting heart rate variability (HRV). They also completed questionnaires assessing loneliness, perceived social support, social cognitive biases, depressive and social anxiety symptoms, and general mental health. In men, HRV was significantly and negatively associated with poorer perceived social functioning, depressive symptoms, and self-reported social cognitive biases, while in women, there was a quadratic link between HRV and depressive symptoms and HRV and general mental health. Moderated mediation analysis revealed that depressive symptoms fully mediated the relationship between perceived social functioning and HRV in men. The results suggest that decreased resting vagal tone in lonely individuals is linked to depressive symptomatology rather than to specific social cognitive biases and that this association is significant only in men.

Short-term dynamics of loneliness and depressive symptoms: Gender differences in older adults

BACKGROUND

Previous research examining the relationship between loneliness and depressive symptoms often treated these constructs as static traits rather than dynamic states. The current study focused on the short-term, prospective link between loneliness and depressive symptoms, while also analyzing potential gender differences.

METHODS

We modeled panel data from seven bi-weekly assessments gathered in the FRequent health Assessment In Later life (FRAIL70+) study. At baseline, the sample size amounted to N = 426 community-dwelling older adults aged 70 years or older in Austria. The relationship between loneliness and depressive symptoms was analyzed using a latent change score modeling framework.

RESULTS

As regards depressive symptoms, women showed higher initial levels and more change across the three months than men. Loneliness did not considerably change across time for both sexes. Moreover, greater levels of loneliness at a given point in time were associated with an accelerated increase in depressive symptoms two weeks later in women but not in men.

CONCLUSION

Loneliness appeared to be a potential determinant of future increases in depressive symptoms. The varying effects observed between men and women suggest potential gender differences in short-term fluctuations of depressive symptoms and their underlying mechanisms.

Loneliness as a moderator of the association of affective symptoms and binge eating among college women

Affective symptoms (e.g., depression, anxiety, shame) are a potent risk factor for binge eating. However, less is known on the role of loneliness as a moderator of affective symptoms and binge eating. This objective of the current study was to investigate main effects and interactions of affective symptoms and loneliness in relation to binge eating in college women. A sample of 556 undergraduate women completed self-report questionnaires of affective symptoms, loneliness, and binge eating. Results revealed significant interactions between each affective symptom variable and loneliness in relation to binge eating, such that loneliness strengthened the positive association of affective symptoms and greater binge eating. The findings of this study demonstrate an important role of loneliness to binge eating among college women, especially those with underlying affective vulnerabilities. More theoretical and treatment-oriented work on the role of loneliness in binge eating is needed to understand mechanisms and interventions/preventions.