Exploring child and youth understanding of loneliness through qualitative insights and evaluating loneliness measures considering those lived experiences.

ABSTRACT: The overall goal of this paper is to enhance the understanding and measurement of loneliness by identifying key experiential characteristics of loneliness in children and adolescents, and determine whether there is a need for refined assessment tools that accurately capture that experience. In Study 1, we synthesized the qualitative research on the child and youth experience of loneliness and found shared characteristics of loneliness, with some differences related to developmental changes (e.g., understanding of contexts influencing the experience of loneliness). In Study 2, we reviewed the items from loneliness questionnaires for children and youth and found they do not fully capture the affective dimension of loneliness, that is, the breadth of emotions associated with loneliness. That

SUBMITTER: Qualter P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11829323 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature