By Lydia Luff
Over the past year, in the UK, loneliness has become a hot topic. With loneliness said to increase risk of early death by 30%[1] and be as harmful to a person’s health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day[2], the government could no longer ignore the issue. Tracey Crouch was appointed loneliness minister for the UK in January 2018 – the first loneliness minister in the whole world! Since then, the government have published a loneliness strategy[3] to manage the issue. But how do we know who to aim this policy at?
The days of the lonely stereotype are over. Although the issue of loneliness is still prevalent in the over 75 age group, with over half describing themselves as “chronically lonely”[4], more and more young people are expressing feelings of loneliness too. The ideals that social media presents to these young minds can make children and young adults more susceptible to feelings of isolation.
Statistics published by the ONS[5] also show that people who rent (compared to homeowners) are more lonely, the unemployed are often lonelier and those with poor general health are more susceptible. This research demonstrates that individual circumstance can influence how isolated a person feels.
More and more countries are highlighting the issue. In Sweden, for example, half of all households are made up of single young people and 25% of people living in Sweden class themselves as lonely[6]. Sweden’s social care system has been developed in a way that means every person can live independently, without having to rely on any family or friends for financial support. Although this has huge benefits, this social norm could be what is causing the high levels of loneliness throughout the country. In New Zealand, 18% of young people feel lonely all, most or some of the time, compared to 11% of older people[7].
So whose responsibility are these people? With the issue spanning different age groups, social demographics and even countries, can we really expect governments to have the answers? And why do governments even care?
Besides the fact the government is made up of human beings who (we assume!) have some compassion for others, this social issue costs the NHS huge amounts of money. Consider yourself in this situation. You are lonely. You, like 200,000 other people in the UK[8], haven’t spoken to friends or family in over a month. Where do you go? Your mental health, due to lack of social interaction, has probably deteriorated significantly, so maybe your GP? Over 75% of GP’s in the UK have between 1 and 5 appointments every day that are with a lonely patient[9]. With all the health issues surrounding loneliness, the NHS is picking up the bulk of the bill. Research conducted by LSE claims that for every £1 invested in loneliness, £3 is saved in social care costs[10]. This value for money is, ultimately, what will be driving the government to enforce loneliness policy.
The harsh reality of the matter is that, as there are no profits in eradicating loneliness, most companies aren’t interested in helping. Companies don’t gain financially from supporting those who feel isolated in the local community. The obvious exception to this is companies may be willing to promote wellbeing schemes in the workplace to increase productivity of their workers and therefore profits. Baring this in mind, the UK government are currently promoting the “employer’s pledge”[11]. Companies such as Sainsbury’s, National Grid and British Red Cross have committed to this scheme which involves them encouraging and supporting their employees to improve their physical and mental health.
The Royal Mail are also working with the government in Liverpool, trialling a scheme whereby postal workers visit older people. They ask them questions about their wellbeing and relay the information to Age Concern, who can then act if an individual is at risk of loneliness[12]. This is a great initiative, however there aren’t enough companies willing to offer services like this.
That’s where the government comes in. With loneliness support under-provided in the private sector, public sector must get involved to reduce the market failure. But what can be done when the problem is a feeling? There is no measurement of loneliness, no true understanding of what causes it and therefore, sadly, no obvious cure to it.
The mystery surrounding loneliness makes it hard to identify and treat. It’s subjective. This means that just because people live alone or spend long periods of time alone doesn’t mean they are automatically lonely. As isolation effects people in different ways, policies to prevent loneliness must be inclusive, not just target one group, for example people who live alone.
Another key characteristic of government policy to tackle loneliness is flexibility. Technology is changing all the time and whilst it might be making the younger generation feel more isolated, it could go a long way to improving the situation as well. Amazon’s virtual assistant ‘Alexa’ was released in November 2014 and within the first 6 months of sales, 9% of households purchased an Amazon Echo (the device that Alexa can be used on)[13]. ‘Machine learning’ is a fast-growing industry and, used in the right way, it could allow people to have two-way conversations alone. What is deemed to be simple technology now, such as the television, can offer some light relief from isolation for an elderly person. Although a television, as research suggests[14], only creates the illusion of company, many of us enjoy the chance to watch familiar television shows and see characters we feel we know.
Can technology fix the whole problem though? Unfortunately, probably not. Firstly, Amazon’s Echo is a private good that comes with a price. Although Alexa may make people feel less lonely, people may not be aware of this benefit or be willing to buy an Echo device. And secondly, despite there being record numbers of over 65 using smart phones and social media[15], 8.4% of adult in the UK have never used the internet[16]. Therefore, if technology is expected to combat isolation, there needs to be more effort put into getting seniors more tech savvy.
Primarily though, before any policies are enforced further, more funding for research is needed to understand loneliness. It affects so many people’s lives, here and abroad. A better understanding of why people feel like this, common causes and what works to make people feel more connected would ensure any policy in the pipeline can be appraised properly and the best value for money can be delivered. This research would go a long way in understanding more about why young adults are feeling so lonely. The government have already made colossus steps towards improving the situation via the loneliness minister role and £2 million of funding to promotes community activities[18], but a better understanding of the issue could result in more direct, focused policymaking.
The issue of loneliness will never be solved completely. Humans are social creatures and for many reasons, for example friends and family moving away or dying, people fall out of touch. No matter the degree of paternalism, there will always be some who are crippled by isolation. The first steps that the public can take in the war to end loneliness… talk to others about it, have a cup of tea and a chat with your next-door neighbour and make an effort to keep in touch with friends, no matter what you age, social status or nationality.
[1] NHS (2015). Loneliness ‘increases risk of premature death’. [online] nhs.uk. Available at: https://www.nhs.uk/news/mental-health/loneliness-increases-risk-of-premature-death/ [Accessed 24 Jan. 2019].
[2] Campaign to End Loneliness (2019). The Facts on Loneliness. [online] Campaigntoendloneliness.org. Available at: https://www.campaigntoendloneliness.org/the-facts-on-loneliness/ [Accessed 6 Jan. 2019].
[3] UK Government (2018). Government’s work on tackling loneliness. [online] GOV.UK. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/governments-work-on-tackling-loneliness [Accessed 3 Jan. 2019].
[4] Fergusson, M. (2018). Loneliness is not just a problem for the elderly. The Economist. [online] Available at: https://www.economist.com/open-future/2018/07/27/loneliness-is-not-just-a-problem-for-the-elderly [Accessed 27 Jan. 2019].
[5] Office for National Statistics (2018). Loneliness – What characteristics and circumstances are associated with feeling lonely? – Office for National Statistics. [online] Ons.gov.uk. Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/wellbeing/articles/lonelinesswhatcharacteristicsandcircumstancesareassociatedwithfeelinglonely/2018-04-10 [Accessed 4 Jan. 2019].
[6] Noack, R. (2018). Isolation is rising in Europe. Can loneliness ministers help change that?. The Washington Post. [online] Available at: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2018/02/02/isolation-is-rising-in-europe-can-loneliness-ministers-help-change-that/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.4d989d09d00b [Accessed 7 Jan. 2019].
[7] Statistics New Zealand (2013). Loneliness in New Zealand: Findings from the 2010 NZ General Social Survey. Available from http://www.stats.govt.nz.
[8] BBC News (2018). Two thirds of UK adults have ‘nobody to talk to’ about problems. [online] Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-42903914 [Accessed 24 Jan. 2019].
[9] Campaign to End Loneliness (2019). Lonely visits to the GP. [online] Campaigntoendloneliness.org. Available at: https://www.campaigntoendloneliness.org/blog/lonely-visits-to-the-gp/ [Accessed 6 Jan. 2019].
[10] McDaid, D. and Park, A. (2017). MAKING AN ECONOMIC CASE FOR TACKLING LONELINESS IN LATER LIFE. Innovation in Aging, 1(suppl_1), pp.953-953.
[11] UK Government (2018). Government’s work on tackling loneliness. [online] GOV.UK. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/governments-work-on-tackling-loneliness [Accessed 3 Jan. 2019].
[12] BBC News (2018). The posties helping combat loneliness. [online] BBC News. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-england-merseyside-46311362/posties-help-combat-loneliness-in-liverpool-trial [Accessed 25 Jan. 2019].
[13] Kinsella, B. (2017). 9 Percent of UK Households Own Amazon Echo Today, 40 percent in 2018 – Voicebot. [online] Voicebot. Available at: https://voicebot.ai/2017/06/05/9-percent-uk-households-amazon-echo-today-40-percent-2018/ [Accessed 26 Jan. 2019].
[14] Derrick, J., Gabriel, S. and Hugenberg, K. (2009). Social surrogacy: How favored television programs provide the experience of belonging. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 45(2), pp.352-362.
[15] Ofcom (2017). Rise of the Social Seniors revealed. [online] Ofcom. Available at: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/about-ofcom/latest/media/media-releases/2017/rise-social-seniors [Accessed 26 Jan. 2019].
[16] Office for National Statistics (2018). Internet users, UK – Office for National Statistics. [online] Ons.gov.uk. Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/itandinternetindustry/bulletins/internetusers/2018 [Accessed 27 Jan. 2019].
[17] Office for National Statistics (2018). Internet users, UK – Office for National Statistics. [online] Ons.gov.uk. Available at: https://www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/itandinternetindustry/bulletins/internetusers/2018 [Accessed 27 Jan. 2019].8
[18] UK Government (2018). Government’s work on tackling loneliness. [online] GOV.UK. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/governments-work-on-tackling-loneliness [Accessed 3 Jan. 2019].