Loneliness in Europe

Peer-Reviewed Articles

Peer-reviewed articles

Health and relationship quality of sexual minorities in Europe

Berlingieri, F., Kovacic, M., Journal of Population Economics, vol. 38, 2025.

A growing body of literature investigates inequalities between sexual minorities and their heterosexual peers. This paper deals with disparities in health, health-related behaviours, and relationship quality among LGB+ individuals. We use a novel data set that allows for a wide cross-national analysis (27 EU member states) of disparities between sexual minorities and the rest of the population, as well as differences in reporting sexual orientation. We consider a rich set of social stressors, individual-specific behavioural factors, and health outcomes, as well as novel para-data (i.e., individuals’ response times) that are not available in other large surveys

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The results indicate that sexual minorities are more exposed to stigma-related social stressors (both in childhood and adulthood), report worse physical and mental health conditions, feel more lonely, and are more likely to engage in coping strategies aimed at reducing or adapting to stressful conditions. Some of these findings significantly differ across gay, lesbian, and bisexual individuals and with respect to household income, the country’s enforcement of sexual minorities’ rights, and relationship status.
Historical roots of loneliness and its impact on second-generation immigrants

Casabianca, Elizabeth, and Matija Kovacic, Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, vol. 224, 2024.

This paper examines the relationship between historical cultural norms and attitudes towards loneliness, specifically within the context of second-generation immigrants. We uncover an intergenerationally transmitted cultural element that emphasizes restraint and adherence to strict rules characterizing highly-intensive pre-industrial agricultural systems. This cultural dimension significantly impacts how individuals perceive their social relationships and influences their likelihood of experiencing loneliness. Additionally, we demonstrate that the identified cultural trait serves as a predictor of loneliness in a two-stage model for health. Our research shows that loneliness directly impacts body mass index and specific mental health issues, and these findings hold true across a battery of sensitivity checks. The results add to the existing body of research highlighting the importance of attitudes in predicting economic and health outcomes, shedding light on how deeply ingrained geographical, cultural, and individual characteristics can shape economic development processes in both home and host countries.
Loneliness in the EU

Casabianca, E. and Nurminen, M., Planerin 1/2024.
Adolescents’ loneliness in European schools: A multilevel exploration of school environment and individual factors

Schnepf, S.V., Boldrini, M. & Blaskó, Z., BMC Public Health, 23, 2023.

Loneliness has been recognized as a public health issue and has moved into a number of European countries’ policy agendas. Literature examining loneliness in young people (and especially in adolescents) is scarce, but it does show that at this age feelings of loneliness have been increasing in recent decades and are detrimental for both adolescents’ current and future well-being. In order to explain loneliness, current literature focuses generally on individual, rather than on broader, environmental characteristics. This study examines school associates of loneliness and compares their importance to those at the individual level because schools are the most important places in which adolescents are socially embedded. In addition, policy interventions on loneliness might be more feasible at the school than the individual level.

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This study uses a single-item measure of adolescents’ loneliness feelings in schools and exploits rich data from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA 2018) on 23 European countries covering 118,698 students (50.2% female) in 4,819 schools. This study applies multi-level models to investigate school level factors jointly with those at the individual level. Differences between European schools can explain a 20% variation in feelings of loneliness, thereby indicating the importance of the school environment. Furthermore, adolescents’ bullying experiences and a bullying climate in school more than doubles incidences of loneliness. In addition, a cooperative climate as well as teacher support can considerably decrease school loneliness. Cross-level interactions do exist: being from a lower socioeconomic background for instance, while not important generally, increases loneliness feelings if most of the school peers are from a better socioeconomic background. School factors appear to be more important for explaining young people’s loneliness incidence than individual characteristics.
Risk factors for loneliness: A literature review

Martina Barjaková, Andrea Garnero, Béatrice d’Hombres, Social Science & Medicine, Vol. 334, 2023.

Increasingly, loneliness is being recognised as a serious problem with detrimental effects on health, as well as on social cohesion and community trust. To effectively tackle this complex issue, a clear understanding of the phenomenon and its main drivers is needed. Over years of scientific research on loneliness, many potential risk factors have emerged and been tested empirically. This narrative review of 109 studies provides a concise summary of empirical evidence on the main potential risk factors for loneliness and presents an additional section dedicated to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Given the very large number of existing studies, emphasis is placed on recent meta-analyses and systematic literature reviews as well as longitudinal studies. Similarly, given the large number of possible risk factors for loneliness, which may differ based on the geographical and cultural context, this review focuses on studies from Europe and North America. The results show that demographic factors often correlate with loneliness, but in many cases the link becomes negligible when controlling for other factors. Often, physical and mental health problems are found to be associated with loneliness, and so are some psychological factors, such as neuroticism or extroversion. Loneliness also depends on the environment in which one lives, and possibly the broader socio-economic and socio-cultural contexts. Nevertheless, the review shows that ultimately everything comes down to the quantity and quality of social relationships. In particular, marital status, living arrangements and the characteristics of one's personal social network are quite consistently found to be among the strongest predictors of loneliness. These main findings about the risk factors for loneliness remained valid also during the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings of this review have implications for policy, as understanding who the most vulnerable groups are is key for designing targeted policy solutions that tackle loneliness.
Loneliness in Europe before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Julia Baarck, Béatrice d'Hombres, Guido Tintori, Health Policy (Amsterdam), vol. 126, no. 11, 2022.

The purpose of the study is to examine the prevalence of loneliness in Europe in 2016 and during the first months – April-July 2020 – of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to assess whether the risk factors associated with loneliness have changed after the outbreak of the pandemic. The analysis is based on two cross-country surveys, namely the 2016 European Quality of Life Survey and the 2020 Living, Working and COVID-19 Online Survey.

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The COVID-19 pandemic has magnified already worrying levels of loneliness in Europe. Young adults have been the most severely hit by social distancing measures. Living alone has made social distancing measures more painful. Health and financial status are strong associates of loneliness, irrespective of the time period. This analysis will help anticipate the potential consequences that forced social isolation might have triggered in the population and identify populations more vulnerable to loneliness. Further monitoring is important to assess whether the registered increase in loneliness is transient or chronic and to design targeted loneliness interventions.