Social and emotional loneliness among the elderly, and its association with social factors affecting health in Isfahan city, Iran, in years 2017-2018

Abstract

Background: Many elderly people describe elderly as loneliness; so identification of factors influencing this thought is necessary to prevent this feeling. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the level of social and emotional loneliness among the elderly, and its relation with some social factors affecting health in Isfahan City, Iran, in years 2017-2018. Methods: This study was carried out on 200 elderly individuals. After obtaining consent from individuals and recording demographic data, Keyes social well-being was used to determine the level of social health, and the Social and Emotional Loneliness Scale for Adults (SELSA) questionnaire to determine the frequency of social and emotionally loneliness. Chi-square, Student t, and Pearson correlation tests were used to compare the data. Findings: High education (r = 0.444, P < 0.001), married (r = 0.772, P < 0.001), high income (r = 0.481, P < 0.001), and high social health (r = 0.582, P < 0.001) were significantly correlated with less sense of loneliness. Elderly women were more lonely (r =-0.194, P = 0.006) and, on the other hand, loneliness was directly linked to social health subscales including flourishing, coherence, acceptance, and participation. Conclusion: Regarding the high incidence of loneliness among the elderly, identification and screening of known risk factors is very important; as by increasing social health, the elderly loneliness will decrease. © 2018, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences(IUMS). All rights reserved.