March 3, 2026Open Access

Experiences and social constructions of loneliness in later life: Collaborative focus group discussions in Germany

Key Points

Loneliness assessment highlights the need for understanding individual experiences rather than just measuring social contacts.
Health professionals act as a critical social interface for older individuals, potentially replacing close relationships.
Focus group discussions provided insights into the social construction of loneliness among older adults.
These findings emphasize the importance of designing interventions and technologies that address personal needs and social dynamics.

Abstract

Assessing loneliness requires taking individual perspectives into account, as mere quantification of social contacts is insufficient for evaluation or intervention design. To help cope with loneliness, health professionals are an important social interface and can become a substitute for close relationships. This should be reflected in professional roles and in developing complementary technologies and policies.

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Discussion

Authors

Andrea Kastl

Ulrike Fettke

Leonhard Dobusch

Journals

Health Policy

Actions

Institutions

Universität Innsbruck

Rosenheim Technical University of Applied Sciences

References and Citations

Connected Papers

Building similarity graph...

Analyzing shared references across papers

Experiences and social constructions of loneliness in later life: Collaborative focus group discussions in Germany

Key Points

Abstract

Citation Network

Connected Papers

Discussion

Authors

Journals

Actions

Institutions

References and Citations

Citation Network

Connected Papers

Discussion

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