Loneliness increases the risk of having worse physical and mental health, and affects individual well-being and community life. It can appear throughout the life cycle, although it has a higher incidence in old age, and so it is important to take appropriate prevention and intervention measures for each age group.

Loneliness is made up of multiple facets and each person experiences it differently, which makes it difficult to define and measure. A distinction must be made between being alone (social isolation, manifested as the absence of social contact) and feeling lonely (loneliness as a perception). In general, factors such as being a woman, being elderly, having a low socioeconomic status and educational level, having health problems, living alone, not having a partner, and having unstable social relationships are related to higher levels of loneliness. In turn, the feeling of loneliness has two sides: social loneliness, meaning a lack of relations with one’s social group, and emotional loneliness, meaning a lack of people to trust or to turn to in the event of need.

It is necessary to examine the complex phenomenon of loneliness for several reasons. From a structural perspective, population aging and social individualisation are gradually increasing in modern societies, with potential effects on the risk of suffering from loneliness. From a more circumstantial perspective, the covid-19 pandemic and the lockdowns resulting from it may have accentuated loneliness. In this context, it is essential to address two key issues. First, what effect the spring 2020 lockdown had on the prevalence of loneliness. And second, what factors protect against loneliness in situations of strict isolation. To this end, a two-phase survey was conducted on the population over 55 years of age living in Andalusia: the first phase was conducted in February 2020, before lockdown, and the second was carried out at the end of April and beginning of May, in the midst of the lockdown. The sample comprised equal numbers of men and women, and three age groups were established: 55 to 64, 65 to 79, and over 80.

The results of the survey show that during lockdown, in relation to the situation prior to the implementation of this measure, the feeling of loneliness increased from 47% to 57% among the Andalusian population aged over 55. Moderate loneliness increased from 40% to 52% and severe loneliness decreased from 7.4% to 4.7%. Therefore, during lockdown, more than half the Andalusian population over 55 years of age reported that they felt lonely, although the more serious form of loneliness diminished considerably.

It is worth noting that those who were more prone to loneliness previously received more support from their network of family and friends, who were possibly aware of their situation. Two-thirds of people with severe loneliness and one-third of those experiencing moderate loneliness before the introduction of the measure to alleviate the pandemic stated that their level of loneliness had decreased during lockdown. In contrast, among people who did not feel lonely before, the unprecedented and unexpected situation of lockdown may have caused the appearance of this feeling at moderate and perhaps only temporary levels.

Most studies indicate that loneliness increases with age and has a slightly greater prevalence among males. But in the case of the population studied (Andalusians over 55), the lockdown caused by the covid-19 pandemic had unexpected effects.

Prior to lockdown, the feeling of loneliness among older people affected women and men similarly. However, during lockdown, the impact of this feeling was more intense among women. During the period when the stay-at-home order was in place, loneliness affected 62% of the female and 50% of the male population. Nevertheless, more serious cases of loneliness diminished more among women.

There was also a differential effect by age. The largest increases occurred in the 65 to 79 age group – to a greater extent among women – due above all to the rise in moderate loneliness. In the 55 to 64 age group, the prevalence of loneliness among men hardly increased, while among women it increased by around 30%. There was a notably smaller growth in loneliness among people over the age of 80, with a clear sex difference: in men it decreased by 25% and in women it increased by 20%. Severe loneliness, much less prevalent, fell in all age groups. The data suggest two hypotheses: first, as several studies show, given the different life trajectories of men and women of these generations, women have sturdier and stronger support networks. And second, women perform care duties to a greater extent, both for grandchildren and for other elderly relatives. Both of these networks were weakened by the lockdown, with the consequent increase in the feeling of loneliness in the population.

In the study carried out, people in a situation of loneliness reported poorer health status. It should be noted that, according to most research done on the subject, loneliness is associated with higher morbidity, disability and mortality rates. The research results show that these effects are amplified in a situation of lockdown. Furthermore, people with worse health are more affected by a feeling of loneliness.

However, the results of the study showed an improvement in perceived health during lock-down, which may have been due to a relativisation of the respondents’ own situation, in the adverse context of the pandemic. The loneliness rate increased more among people with good health status or who considered that their health had improved, possibly because of the greater impact lockdown had on their everyday lives. The more moderate increase in loneliness among people in poorer health – who nonetheless continued to show higher prevalence – may have been due to their already being more limited in this respect before the pandemic.

Similar trends of growing loneliness were observed among the population without limitations in their basic everyday activities and without depression. The only exception was the group of people with chronic depression, whose level of loneliness remained constant.

The feeling of loneliness is generally greater among people with lower educational attainment. The higher incidence among people without studies is constant by sex and at all ages. In fact, several studies show that higher educational attainment affords increased strategies, resources and stable contacts to cope with or avoid loneliness.

During lockdown, the proportion of people who felt lonely grew more in the group with only primary education or no studies, although the differences were relatively small in relation to the population with higher educational attainment, and this trend was present in both sexes and throughout all age groups.

Loneliness is a multidimensional feeling, expressed in different ways. From February to April 2020, the prevalence of emotional loneliness – not having enough people one can trust or go to in the event of need – increased from 25% to 36%, while the incidence of social loneliness – missing the company of other people – fell from 26% to 18% among the population aged over 55 in Andalusia.

Emotional loneliness grew significantly for both men and women. However, the level of social loneliness decreased more among men, with a higher prior incidence of this feeling. By ages, the 65 to 79 group was the most affected during lockdown: emotional loneliness doubled in relation to the rate before the pandemic and the drop in social loneliness was smaller.

Emotional loneliness affected 53% of people without studies during lockdown, as opposed to 30% of the population with secondary or higher education. Moreover, the data from the study carried out shows that the relative decrease in social loneliness in people with higher educational levels multiplied that displayed by the population with lower educational levels, thus amplifying the magnitude of the inequality with regard to loneliness.

These findings suggest that the situation of lockdown generated an intensification of long-distance contacts and networks among older people that led to a more moderate social loneliness. Paradoxically, there was a steep increase in emotional loneliness, very possibly linked to the fear that may have been caused by the pandemic itself, the inherent uncertainty of the situation and the lack of social activity outside the home. Furthermore, the data showed that it was people with a higher educational level – whose level of loneliness increased less – who stepped up their online contact, especially through video calls and instant messaging. This finding points to the existence of a digital divide in the easing of loneliness.

The lockdown imposed in Spain from March to June 2020 worsened the epidemic of loneliness that already existed in the population. The prevalence of loneliness increased during lockdown, when more than half the population over 55 years old in Andalusia reported that they felt lonely. Loneliness increased among younger and healthier sectors of the older population, possibly because they are less used to restrictions on their everyday activities and contacts.

Higher educational attainment protects against loneliness, although the experience of extreme isolation inherent in the lockdown reveals an impact that was similar for all levels of educational attainment. The study carried out raises the hypothesis of whether a new lockdown, with the benefit of hindsight, would have differential effects.

Lack of experience in the face of a situation of home confinement, combined with concern about loved ones, led to an intensification of online contact with family and friends. This helped to mitigate social loneliness, but also increased emotional loneliness, linked to uncertainty and apprehension about the pandemic.

The study carried out shows that loneliness continues to be a major public health problem, which has been aggravated by the consequences of the covid-19 pandemic. Therefore, effective public policies are required for its prevention and intervention.

The study on which this article is based presents three limitations. Firstly, geographically it is restricted to the autonomous community of Andalusia. Secondly, the sample is limited to the population over 55 years of age. Lastly, as the survey was longitudinal, there was a 25% sample loss between the first wave (1,000 subjects) and the second (750 individuals), although this situation did not jeopardise the representativeness of the sample for the population aged over 55 in Andalusia. As a result of these three limitations, the conclusions are representative only within this geographical area and this age group, without prejudice to results providing evidence on what might have happened elsewhere.

From the methodological perspective, it should also be noted that the survey was conducted by telephone. The final sample totalled 750 people over the age of 55, and was distributed proportionally taking into account the size of each of the eight Andalusian provinces and the setting (rural or urban), with an equal number of men and women, and in three age groups (55 to 64, 65 to 79, and 80 and over) that were proportional to their weight in the population. Quotas were established by type of household (one-person and multi-person). The remaining socio-demographic variables were distributed at random. Finally, the feeling of loneliness was measured using the six-item De Jong Gierveld scale.

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