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What is Loneliness? |
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| Dr Jeffrey Young (1994), at the University of Pennsylvania, defined loneliness as, |
| The unpleasant feeling that comes from a lack of satisfactory social relationships.(-ve) |
| You will note that there are two key elements ---- "bad feelings" and "lacking relationships." Therefore, being alone does not necessarily cause loneliness. |
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What is Solitude? |
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| The good feelings from being alone, as a chance to relax and to reflect. (+ve) |
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Types of Loneliness |
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Dr Young also talked about three kinds of loneliness: |
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(Transient Loneliness) --- flashes of loneliness |
| It consists of everyday, brief feelings of loneliness that occur occasionally to most of us. These are obviously not a problem, unless you talk yourself into seeing them as such. |
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Situational Loneliness --- a change in life |
| It involves people who have previously had good, successful relationships but who have now lost these relationships as a result of changes in their lives. Such changes can be moving home, separation or divorce, or losing relationships through death, particularly in old age. |
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Chronic Loneliness --- unable to establish successful relationships |
| It is the kind of loneliness in people who have never been able to establish successful relationships, or at least not for some years. Usually this means they have been lonely in over at least two major life stages, such as adolescence and young adulthood. |
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References:
Montgomery, B. & Evans, L. (1993). (2nd ed.). You and stress. Melbourne: Viking O'Neil.
Young, J., & Klosko, J.S. (1994). Reinventing your life. New York: Plume.
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