Loneliness and Social Isolation in Old Age

This book is a seminal guide to loneliness and social isolation in old age, providing a comprehensive overview of the important correlates of socioeconomic, health and lifestyle factors upon loneliness and social isolation in old age. Bringing together contributions from leading authorities, the book showcases expertise from, among other things, medicine, psychology, epidemiology, sociology, economics and gerontology. It shows the importance of identifying factors associated with loneliness and social isolation among older adults from a broader perspective, and includes discussion of a range of topics including income poverty, physical activity, family care and frailty. The chapters are evidence-based and offer a mix of empirical studies as well as reviews of international research. The book also discusses policy implications and provides an overview of nationally representative cohort studies around the world available to researchers quantifying loneliness or social isolation. This book is unique in examining loneliness and social isolation from such wide-ranging perspectives and will be essential reading for researchers and postgraduate students in the areas of e.g., mental health research, social work, and psychiatry. Health professionals involved with gerontology and geriatrics will also find this book of benefit. With the exception of Chapter 17, the Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons (CC-BY) 4.0 license.

André Hajek is Professor for Interdisciplinary Health Care Epidemiology, Department of Health Economics and Health Services Research at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Germany. Steffi G. Riedel-Heller is Professor of Social Medicine and Public Health, and Director of the Institute of Social Medicine, Occupational Health and Public Health (ISAP), University of Leipzig, Germany. Hans-Helmut König is Professor of Health Services Research and Health Economics, and Director of the Department of Health Economics and Health Services Research at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Germany.

0.Preface. Part One - Concepts: Loneliness and social isolation. 1.The concepts and measurement of social isolation and loneliness. Part Two - Correlates of loneliness and social isolation in old age: Overview. 2. Impacts of loneliness and social isolation on healthy longevity in older adults. Part Three - Correlates of loneliness and social isolation in old age: Socioeconomic factors. 3.Socioeconomic correlates of loneliness and social isolation in late life. 4.Correlates of loneliness and social isolation in old age: Poverty. 5.Culture, social isolation and loneliness in later life. Part Four - Correlates of loneliness and social isolation in old age: Lifestyle-related factors. 6.Loneliness and Social Isolation Among Older Informal Caregivers: A Review of the Evidence From Longitudinal Investigations. 7.Grandchild care and loneliness. 8.Pet ownership, Loneliness and Social Isolation. 9.Online social media use, loneliness and perceived social isolation in later life: A short overview and some empirical evidence. 10.Lifestyle-related factors in loneliness and social isolation of older persons: A Ghanaian study. Part Five - Correlates of loneliness and social isolation in old age: Health-related factors. 11.Health comparisons and loneliness and perceived social isolation: A brief overview and empirical evidence. 12.Obesity and loneliness in old age: Associations with weight stigma. 13.Frailty and loneliness/social isolation in late life. 14.Multimorbidity, Loneliness, and Social Isolation. A Systematic Review. 15.Social Isolation, Loneliness and Mental Health in Old Age. Part Six - Policy implications and future of loneliness and social isolation. 16.Public Policy and the Reduction and Prevention of Loneliness and Social Isolation. 17.Loneliness during the COVID-19 pandemic. Part Seven - Overview: Longitudinal aging studies around the world available to researchers. 18.Overview: Loneliness and social isolation in longitudinal aging studies around the world.