what do you expect at your age? loneliness and old age
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What do you expect at your age? Loneliness and old age. Christina Victor, School of Health Sciences & Social Care, Brunel University E-mail : [email protected]. What is loneliness? Why is loneliness important? Loneliness & old age . Presentation overview. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
What do you expect at your age? Loneliness and old age
Christina Victor,School of Health Sciences &
Social Care,Brunel University
E-mail: [email protected]
2
Presentation overview
• What is loneliness?• Why is loneliness
important?• Loneliness & old age
Living alone
Being alone
Isolation Solitude
Loneliness-emotional, social, existential
Terminological in exactitude!
KJV Psalms 25 verse 16 ’ Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted’.
What is loneliness?
Cognitive discrepancy theory
Loneliness results from the difference between desired and actual social relations (Perlman & Pelau, 1981)-either in quantity or quality of relationships (or both)
Loneliness map-Britain 1971-2001….
Based on 4 measures:-
% single,
% living alone,
% in private rented housing,
% lived in area for less than a year
Why does loneliness matter?
• Reduced or low quality of life• Negative health behaviours (e.g.
smoking, alcohol)• Negative health outcomes - Early
studies by Durkheim link loneliness to mortality-50% higher for those lonely/isolated (independent of health status!)
• Excessive use of health services-hospital admission, A&E contact,GP consultations
‘The Loneliness’ (Ewa Gawlik)
Loneliness and old age ‘’A distressing feature of old age is
loneliness. All who have done welfare work among the old have found it the most common, if at the same time the most imponderable, of the ills from which the aged suffer, and its frequency was amply confirmed by our study’’
(Rowntree, 1947,52)
Interpersonal Engagement(e.g. quality of relationships with
family, friends, neighbours)
Life Stage Events(e.g. retirement, widowhood, sensory impairments, physical
health)
Wider Social Structures(e.g. poverty, quality of health and
social care, ageism)
Social Environment(e.g. living arrangements, community
connectedness, hobbies/interests, pets, housing, car, holidays/seasons)
Intrapersonal Factors
(e.g. personality and cognitive variables,
identity)
Understanding loneliness
Source: Sullivan & Victor, 2012
<25 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65-74 ≥750
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
Male Always lonelyMale Sometimes lonelyFemale Always lonelyFemale Sometimes lonely
Are older people the loneliest?
Source: Victor & Yang, 2012
Has loneliness in old age increased?SHELDON 1948
TOWNSEND1954
VICTOR 2005
Always/often 8 9 9
Sometimes 13 25 32
Never 79 66 61
Source: Victor et al, 2009
Loneliness & ethnic minorities
White AC
Black A
frican
Indian
Pakist
ani
Bangla
deshi
Chinese0
5
10
15
20
25
30
45-6465+
Source: Victor & Burholt, 2012
Care homes & loneliness
M (care worker) say “Why you cry? Why you cry?” so I say ‘’I feeling lonely’’
‘’ don’t, I don’t feel ill love……I just feel lonely.’’
Temporal aspects of loneliness• 50% reported loneliness worse at night &
two thirds at weekend (Victor et al, 2005)
• ‘’I'm lonely of a night. ‘’(Man 16)
• ‘’Of a night you're lonely’’. (Woman 12)
• ‘’Such a lonely life … Saturdays and Sundays are a bit dead for me…’’
• ‘’So long [Sunday] and so lonely.’’
Source: Bennett & Victor, 2012
Longitudinal aspects of loneliness
Improved
loneliness
(%)
Worse
loneliness
(%)
Consistently
lonely (%)
Never
lonely (%)
Victor &
Bowling
(2012)
12 25 22 44
Source: Victor & Bowling, 2012
What is the point of loneliness interventions?
To reduce the risk of loneliness evolving into serious long-term health problems
To reduce prevalence of loneliness
To improve quality of life
To prevent loneliness from occurring
What loneliness interventions work?
• Balance of evidence is that.. • Effective interventions:• Social activity and / or support in a group/skills
development ; Older people as active participants & are theoretically grounded
• No or poor evidence of effectiveness:• Internet training (group or one to one); One to one
providing (volunteer) activities, support, home visiting