Study investigates whether physical isolation increases loneliness

A new study using data from Australia’s COVID-19 lockdowns finds that physical isolation does not increase feelings of loneliness.

Loneliness, a subjective sense of social disconnection, is associated with a range of health problems from heart disease to depression. It also increases a person’s risk of premature death to levels comparable to smoking and obesity.

Lead author Dr Nancy Kong from the Centre for Health Economics Research and Evaluation at the University of Technology Sydney said loneliness is a widespread and growing problem.

“There is a widespread belief that physical isolation directly leads to increased loneliness. We felt that the COVID lockdowns provided a natural experiment to see if this was true,” said Dr. Kong.

“What we found is that ‘being lonely’ and ‘being alone’ are very different experiences.”

The study, “Physical isolation and loneliness: evidence from COVID lockdowns in Australia,” was recently published published in the Journal of Economic Behavior and Organizationwith co-author Jack Lam from the University of Melbourne.

The researchers followed more than 17,000 individuals from across Australia between 2018 and 2020 using data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey.

Participants were asked at regular intervals to indicate how much they agreed with the statement “I often feel very lonely” on a scale of 1 to 7. The researchers then compared those who had experienced a prolonged lockdown with those who had not.

Australia imposed a longer lockdown period than many other countries. Survey respondents in Victoria spent up to 154 days in lockdown in 2020. In contrast, Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory were largely lockdown-free.

The researchers found that lockdown and lockdown duration made virtually no difference in reported feelings of loneliness, suggesting that loneliness is a fairly stable trait.

“We took into account whether people worked at home or outside the home, what sector they worked in, whether they lived alone or with others, their age, personality, income level and other lifestyle factors,” Dr. Kong said.

“The majority of people did not experience an increase in loneliness. We did see an increase in loneliness among young people aged 15-25 and among extroverts. It may be that these groups need more physical contact, especially young people who are still forming social networks.

“People spent less time commuting, more time interacting with family, and relationship satisfaction actually increased. This could explain why people were able to cope with physical isolation without feeling lonely.”

However, there was a decline in mental health and an increase in financial stress as a result of the lockdowns, which was found using the same methodology.

“Social connection – whether or not people were in touch with friends, family and their community – was the most important factor, rather than physical proximity. Events such as the death of a partner have the greatest impact on the level of loneliness,” said Dr. Lam.

Technology and the internet have been essential in supporting social interactions during lockdown. The researchers hope that a better understanding of the root causes of loneliness can lead to more effective interventions to improve public health and well-being.

“Our findings support the idea that social isolation involves more than just being physically separated from others. Factors such as the quality of social interactions and supportive social networks play a critical role in alleviating loneliness,” said Dr. Kong.