Young people feel loneliness the most However, in contrast, the young report feeling lonely much more – with 40% saying they have felt this way at least some of the time. The BBC Loneliness Experiment surveyed 55,000 people and showed that 16–24-year-olds feel loneliness the most.
Older adults are at increased risk for loneliness and social isolation because they are more likely to face factors such as living alone, the loss of family or friends, chronic illness, and hearing loss. Loneliness is the feeling of being alone, regardless of the amount of social contact.
However, statistics show many young people, particularly those under the age of 30, report being lonelier than their older counterparts. These loneliness statistics show: More than 80 percent of young people under the age of 18 report feeling lonely. Only 40 percent of people over 65 report feeling occasionally lonely.
Older people are especially vulnerable to loneliness and social isolation – and it can have a serious effect on health. But there are ways to overcome loneliness, even if you live alone and find it hard to get out.
On the general scale, women have reported having higher levels of loneliness than men. Except for one category: single men are the lonelier group compared to single women. Women are more socially minded and are therefore able to better maintain close relationships than men.
Women around the world report higher levels of life satisfaction than men, but at the same time report more daily stress. And while this finding holds across countries on average, it does not hold in countries where gender rights are compromised, as in much of the Middle East and sub-Saharan Africa.
From the outset, large scale studies examining overall mental toughness have generally shown that the patterns of scores for adult males and females have been very similar. Statistically, the difference is negligible.
Most notably, researchers found that loneliness rates peak among people in their 20s, and reach their lowest point among those in their 60s. Many people also experience a spike in lonely feelings around their mid-40s. These findings are as confounding as they are surprising, at least initially.
Despite what people may believe, anxiety and depression aren't a natural part of aging and no one has to accept them. In fact, mood and anxiety disorders become less common as people age. But detection rates are also lower among older adults. They're less likely to seek assistance for mental health issues.
People between the ages of 16 and 24, part of the group typically referred to as Generation Z, are the loneliest generation, according to new research.
According to the report, loneliness is most prevalent in Ireland with approximately 20 per cent reporting feeling lonely. The lowest levels of loneliness were observed in the Netherlands, Czech Republic, Croatia, and Austria with less than 10 per cent of the surveyed sample.
From chronic illness to unemployment, the death of a loved one, and immigration, there are numerous reasons for loneliness.
What causes loneliness? There is not one single cause of loneliness. Loneliness can often be a result of life changes or circumstances that include living alone, changing your living arrangements, having financial problems, or death of a loved one.
Single and alone—or lonely? Far from the stereotype of the lonely single, lifelong singles are less lonely than other older people, according to psychologist Bella DePaulo, the author of Singled Out. Nor are singles alone. Many singles have close friendships which are just as valuable as romantic partnerships.
It's characterized by constant and unrelenting feelings of being alone, separated or divided from others, and an inability to connect on a deeper level. It can also be accompanied by deeply rooted feelings of self-doubt, low self-esteem, or social anxiety.
Our declining powers depress all of us, and it doesn't matter who you are. Two million people were surveyed in one of the largest mental health scans ever undertaken. For men, the peak was closer to 50, while for women it was a depressing 40.
“So the late 20s is often a period of major decision-making, which is often stressful because you often end up feeling that your peers made better decisions than you did, and there's a lot of guilt about why you did this or did that,” he explained. It's a period of stress, which increases loneliness, he said.
With increasing age, you may find that you experience a lower sex drive than you are used to, which can be distressing. After the age of 40, a natural fall in testosterone levels can lead to a loss of libido in men and an increase in the time needed to achieve an erection.
My sense, from working with loneliness over the years, is that often in people's naming of this experience there is a confusion between different kinds of loneliness, and so I have found it useful to differentiate between three levels of loneliness–psychological, existential, and spiritual.
Both sets of studies show the same thing: People who are not afraid to be single and people who like spending time alone are less likely to experience loneliness. They are psychologically strong in other ways, too. For example, they are less likely to be neurotic and more likely to be open to new experiences.
Living alone at 70 and beyond can be difficult. Daily tasks become harder, and oftentimes, elders are afraid to ask for help. While some seniors might have friends and family nearby, others living alone don't have people they are comfortable asking to help them with: Meals.
In fact, not only do girls mature faster than boys, scientists believe that their brains can develop up to ten years earlier! In a study performed by Newcastle University in England, it was discovered that as the brain matures it begins to remove neural connections that are stored which it does not think are important.
Compared to men, women listed more goals, and a smaller proportion of women's goals were related to achieving power. These findings dovetailed with the results of prior research that, relative to women, men are more motivated by power. These differences contribute to men holding higher leadership positions than women.
The irony of the perceived need to 'man up' is that women are actually a better bet under pressure. This is because of oxytocin. Under pressure, men are biologically conditioned to respond by competing to win.