Objective: To conduct an integrative review of empirical studies of loneliness for older people in Aotearoa/New Zealand. Loneliness is a risk factor for older people's poor physical and cognitive health, serious illness and mortality. A national survey showed loneliness rates vary by gender and ethnicity.
Methods: A systematic search of health and social science databases was conducted. Of 21 scrutinised articles, nine were eligible for inclusion and subjected to independent quality appraisal. One qualitative and eight quantitative research articles were selected.
Results: Reported levels and rates of loneliness vary across age cohorts. Loneliness was significantly related to social isolation, living alone, depression, suicidal ideation, being female, being Māori and having a visual impairment. Qualitatively, older Korean immigrants experienced loneliness and social isolation, along with language and cultural differences.
Conclusion: Amongst older New Zealanders loneliness is commonly experienced by particular ethnic groups, highlighting a priority for targetted health and social services.
Background: This study examined how university students' social media use is related to their mental health (subjective well-being [SWB] and loneliness) and perceived physical health. A cognitive bias model and a social network mediation model were used to compare social capital formed via face-to-face and online communication, considering the effects of personality traits (i.e.
In the early part of the Russo-Ukrainian war, the conflict-affected process indicated a complex array of emotions and that people sought religious faith as a coping strategy. We explore emotions and coping with a qualitative study of 22 Ukrainians at the start of the Russian invasion of February 2022. Ukrainians experienced a range of shifting emotions, including fear and hatred, but also positive emotions such as hope and pride.
Objective: Hearing decline in ageing increases the risk of loneliness and social isolation. This correlation is most often observed when hearing is measured by subjective self-report, and less often for objectively measured speech listening ability, raising questions about differences between self-assessments and behavioural performance. This study compared self-reported hearing ability and objective speech-in-noise performance as predictors of loneliness and social isolation in adults older than 60.
Purpose: During the COVID-19 pandemic, an increase in loneliness as well as mental health issues was detected. However, research on the association between loneliness and mental disorders is sparse. The aim of this study was to examine loneliness and associated social and emotional factors in patients with a psychiatric disorder and to investigate potential predictors of loneliness.
Background: In tandem with the rise in numbers of older adults in the general population, more people with schizophrenia (PwS) are also living longer. This vulnerable population has several trajectories of ageing driven by a number of social determinants of health, including the experience of loneliness and they may be more at risk of experiencing loneliness.
Aim: This study aimed to examine demographic, psychosocial and clinical variables and their relative contribution to the loneliness of older PwS (OPwS) in a large New Zealand community sample.
