Feeling Lonely Versus Being Alone: Loneliness and Social Support Among Recently Bereaved Persons
Feeling Lonely Versus Being Alone: Loneliness and Social Support Among Recently Bereaved Persons
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DOI：
10.1093/geronb/gbt075
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发表时间：
2014-01-01
影响因子：
6.2
通讯作者：
deVries, Brian
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Utz, Rebecca L.;Swenson, Kristin L.;deVries, Brian
目标.尽管丧偶后社会支持有所增加，但孤独是丧亲之痛最常见的挑战之一。本分析探讨了社会支持和孤独感之间的动态关系，最近失去亲人的老年人。使用纵向数据从“失去后的生活”（n = 328），潜在增长曲线模型被用来估计孤独和社会支持的变化，在第一年和50岁以上的老年人丧亲之痛的一半。孤独感和社会支持在丧亲的头一年半里都有所下降。更大的社会支持与整体上较低的孤独感有关，但随着时间的推移，社会支持的接受并没有改变一个人对孤独感的表达。孤独与朋友的支持比家人的支持更相关。总之，来自朋友和家人的社会支持占孤独感总方差的36%。孤独和社会支持的概念之间存在概念和经验上的重叠，但结果表明，丧偶后的孤独感不能通过仅旨在增加社会支持的干预措施来补救。社会支持，特别是来自朋友的支持，如果容易获得并允许新失去亲人的人有机会表达自己，似乎是最有效的。
Objectives. Despite increases in social support following widowhood, loneliness is among the most frequently reported challenges of bereavement. This analysis explores the dynamic relationship between social support and loneliness among recently bereaved older adults.Methods. Using longitudinal data from "Living After Loss" (n = 328), latent growth curve modeling was used to estimate changes in loneliness and social support during the first year and a half of bereavement among older adults aged 50+.Results. Both loneliness and social support declined over the first year and a half of bereavement. Greater social support was associated with lower levels of loneliness overall, but the receipt of social support did not modify one's expression of loneliness over time. Loneliness was more highly correlated with support from friends than family. Together, social support from both friends and family accounted for 36% of the total variance in loneliness.Discussion. There is conceptual and empirical overlap between the concepts of loneliness and social support, but results suggest that loneliness following widowhood cannot be remedied by interventions aimed only at increasing social support. Social support, especially that from friends, appears to be most effective if it is readily accessible and allows the newly bereaved an opportunity to express him/herself.