Loneliness.
Why do you feel lonely?
Prolonged loneliness is known to increase the risk of depression and other mental health conditions. It can also lead to a shorter life span. Studies also suggest that people who are lonely are more prone to experiencing poor social support and introversion.
According to psychologists, loneliness is a stable trait that can be influenced by various factors such as the weather, the people around you, and the way you live. For most people, their levels of loneliness will stay the same throughout their adult lives. However, they can increase gradually over time.
Loneliness is a psychological condition that affects people who feel that their social relationships are less than desirable. It can be triggered by various factors such as the quality of the relationships they have with other people or the lack of quantity.
Theories of loneliness
According to psychologist Michael Weiss, friendships can help people maintain their loneliness, but they can’t replace a personal relationship with a partner.
Sociologist Robert Weiss developed the attachment theory as the basis for his theory on loneliness. He identified six social needs that people can meet to feel better about themselves. These include a sense of worth, social integration, reassurance, and guidance.
Loneliness can also be triggered by children displaying insecure attachment patterns. This type of behavior can lead to them being rejected by their peers, which then makes them distrust and distrust other people.
Although loneliness has been around for a long time, it has only been regarded as a psychological issue for a short time. During the 20th century, psychiatrist John Bowlby developed a theory that focuses on the importance of an attachment between an infant and their caregiver.
Another theory that focuses on the connection between loneliness and personality traits suggests that it can be triggered by various factors. For instance, it can be triggered by social anxiety and social inhibition. These characteristics can hinder an individual’s ability to interact properly with others.
Studies have shown that people who are lonely are more prone to experiencing difficulty forming and maintaining social relationships. They also tend to avoid sharing their personal information with their social peers.
The cognitive approach to treating loneliness is based on the idea that the individual’s perceptions and attributions are different from one another. For instance, people who are lonely tend to have a pessimistic outlook on their lives. They also blame themselves for their lack of social relationships.
The cognitive approach also takes into account the various behavioral and attachment perspectives to explain how loneliness can be triggered by various factors. For instance, it can be triggered by the failure to meet the social needs of others. Loneliness is also perpetuated by the lack of social skills and the negative self-attribution that results from poor social interactions.
Consequences of loneliness
When people were told that their social, intimate, and relational needs were being met, their happiness and satisfaction levels were significantly higher.
In a psychological test, participants were asked to complete various measures to evaluate their levels of social connection and isolation. When they were exposed to loneliness, they scored higher on various psychological measures such as anxiety and shyness. They also exhibited lower scores on measures of optimism, social support, and self-esteem.
Due to the complexity of the issue, it has been difficult to conduct effective studies on loneliness in an experimental setting. One of the most challenging factors researchers faced was separating the effects of loneliness from its causes. In one experiment, researchers asked highly hypnotizable individuals to recall a time when they were feeling lonely. After they had returned from their hypnotic state, they were able to recall a time when they were highly connected.
The results of the studies revealed that people who are lonely tend to develop negative social expectations and behave in ways that reinforce their expectations. This can lead to them being more likely to behave in ways detrimental to their social needs. In other words, they are more likely to react to social threats such as competition and hostility with a heavy hand.
The negative self-protective lens that people have about their social world can also affect how they cope with stressful situations. According to the researchers, those who are lonely are more likely to withdraw from their stressful situations and engage in less effective coping strategies.
Being withdrawn from stressful situations is sometimes a reasonable thing to do in certain circumstances. Still, it can also lead to an accumulation of stress, which can become oppressive and taxing. Prolonged exposure to stress can also increase the risk of physical and mental health problems.
Being lonely can also have detrimental effects on an individual’s health. It can lead to various physiological changes, such as higher levels of stress hormones and poor immune functioning.
