Loneliness and Social Isolation in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Japan: An International Survey

Section 1: Characteristics and Experiences of Those Who Report Often Feeling Lonely or Socially Isolated

Prevalence of Loneliness and Social Isolation

Consequences of loneliness: Many Americans who always or often feel lonely say it affects their physical and mental health, relationships and work, per @KaiserFamFound survey w/@Economist

More than a fifth of adults in the U.S. (22 percent) and the U.K. (23 percent) say they often or always feel lonely, feel that they lack companionship, feel left out, or feel isolated from others, about twice the share in Japan (nine percent), referred to here as those reporting loneliness or social isolation. Not everyone experiences loneliness and social isolation the same way and some do not see it as a problem for them; however, most of those reporting loneliness across the U.S., the U.K., and Japan do. About one in twenty across countries say their loneliness is a “major” problem for them. In the U.S. and the U.K. there are more saying it is a minor problem or not really a problem for them, whereas in Japan, most people who report feeling lonely say it is a major problem for them.

There are considerable differences in the share reporting loneliness or social isolation across a number of different demographics and life circumstances. The groups of people who are most likely to report being lonely or socially isolated include people who say they have few confidants, have mental health conditions, have a debilitating chronic illness or disability, are lower income, and are single, divorced, widowed, or separated. Each of these is discussed in more depth throughout this section.

Personal Characteristics of Adults Reporting Loneliness

Looked at another way, comparing the demographic profiles of those who report loneliness and those who do not can provide insights into the circumstances of those experiencing loneliness. For example, while loneliness is often thought of as a problem mainly affecting the elderly, majorities of people reporting loneliness across countries are younger than 50. In addition, those who report loneliness or social isolation are more likely than others to report lower incomes and not being married.

Table 1: Demographics of those reporting loneliness
	United States		United Kingdom		Japan
	Lonely	Not Lonely	Lonely	Not Lonely	Lonely	Not Lonely
Age
18-49 NET	59%	52%	56%	55%	57%	42%
18-29	24	21	25	21	19	12
30-49	35	31	30	34	37	30
50+ NET	41	48	44	45	43	58
50-64	25	26	19	23	23	23
65+	16	21	25	22	21	36
Gender
Male	44	50	45	50	54	51
Female	56	50	55	50	46	49
Income
Lower Income	58	31	49	29	47	30
Middle Income	21	34	18	21	29	31
Higher income	11	25	10	28	11	26
Education
High school or less/secondary or less	47	37	35	30	63	62
Some college/ post-secondary/junior college	35	30	41	39	14	15
College/university or more	17	33	21	31	19	20
Employment status
Employed full time	33	49	25	43	35	46
Employed part time	13	15	14	15	16	14
Unemployed (NET)	14	4	14	5	22	11
Other (NET)	40	31	47	36	25	29
Marital status
Single, that is never married	32	23	32	23	42	19
Single, living with a partner	7	10	7	14	2	2
Married	22	48	22	43	30	60
Divorced/Separated	26	10	23	11	14	8
Widowed	11	7	14	8	12	10

Reports of physical and mental health conditions are much more common among those experiencing loneliness than others. For example, across the three countries, people reporting loneliness are at least two times as likely as others to report having a debilitating disability or chronic disease that keeps them from fully participating in daily activities or to say they have been told by a medical professional that they have a serious mental health condition. And, while loneliness and social isolation may be perceived to be more often associated with mental health issues, those experiencing loneliness are almost as likely to report debilitating disabilities or chronic diseases as they are to report having a serious mental health condition.

Reported Causes of Loneliness and Negative Life Events

Loneliness appears to occur in parallel with reports of real life problems and circumstances. Across countries, about six in ten say there is a specific cause of their loneliness, but when asked what the specific cause is, the responses vary considerably. More than one in ten say the death of a significant other, parent, or other person caused their feelings of loneliness, while others say physical health problems (12 percent in U.S., eight percent in the U.K. and in Japan). Fewer say things like divorce, being away from family, or mental health problems are the specific causes of loneliness.

Some negative life events may exacerbate or put people at risk for feelings of loneliness and the findings show that loneliness is associated with real life challenges. For example, compared to others, people who report feeling lonely are much more likely to say they have experienced a negative change in financial status, a change in living situation, a serious injury or illness personally, or loss of a job in the past two years.

Table 2: Reports of Negative Life Events
	United States		United Kingdom		Japan
Percent who say that in the past two years, they have experienced …	Lonely	Not Lonely	Lonely	Not Lonely	Lonely	Not Lonely
The death of a close family member or friend	59%	50%	53%	45%	34%	36%
A change in living situation	46	34	42	29	38	28
A negative change in financial status	47	22	41	22	39	18
A serious illness or injury in their family	47	42	39	32	21	19
A serious illness or injury themselves	37	18	36	18	28	14
A loss of a job	27	16	17	11	28	9
A death of a spouse or partner	11	4	12	5	5	4
Marital separation or divorce	12	4	11	2	3	2
Yes to any of the above	91	81	89	75	79	67

Roughly half of those in the U.S. and the U.K. and two-thirds of those in Japan say they have felt lonely or isolated from those around them for at least three years. In Japan, more than a third (35 percent) say they have felt isolated or lonely for more than 10 years, compared to a fifth of those in the U.S. (22 percent) or the U.K. (20 percent).

Impacts of Loneliness and Social Isolation

Substantial shares across the three countries report that loneliness has had a negative impact on their lives. In Japan, majorities say loneliness has had a negative impact on their mental health (75 percent), physical health (63 percent), and personal relationships (59 percent), and nearly half say it’s had a negative impact on their ability to do their job (47 percent). In the U.S. and U.K., many say their loneliness has had a negative impact on their mental health (58 percent and 60 percent, respectively) and about half say it’s had a negative impact on their personal relationships (49 percent and 55 percent) and their physical health (55 percent and 49 percent). In terms of their ability to do their job, about a third in the U.S. and the U.K. say their loneliness has had a negative impact.

Likely stemming in part from the relatively high reports of mental health issues and negative mental health impacts of loneliness, about three in ten people experiencing loneliness in each country say it has led them to think about harming themselves – 31 percent in U.S., 30 percent in U.K., and 33 percent in Japan. Fewer say it has led them to think about committing a violent act – 15 percent in the U.S., 9 percent in the U.K., and 17 percent in Japan.

In addition to the specific impacts of loneliness, those reporting loneliness or isolation are much more likely to express general dissatisfaction with a number of different life domains, particularly when it comes to personal finances or employment, but also in housing and family life.

Social Interactions and Loneliness

Across countries, people experiencing loneliness are much more likely than others to say they have “just a few” or “no” people nearby they can rely on for help or support.

Specifically when it comes to the number of confidants people have with whom they can discuss personal matters, those who report feelings of loneliness and social isolation report having fewer confidants than others. For example, in the U.K., 11 percent of adults who report feeling lonely or socially isolated say they have no one with whom they can discuss things that are personally important to them and another 33 percent say they have one or two confidants, compared with 1 and 13 percent for others in the U.K.

And, more generally, across the three countries, those reporting loneliness are more likely to be dissatisfied with the number of meaningful connections they have with neighbors, family members and friends.

While some experiencing loneliness may be dissatisfied with the number of meaningful connections they have or have few confidants, many (roughly half or more) in the U.S. and the U.K. report talking to family or friends at least a few times a week either in person or over the phone. In Japan, it appears to be much less common to talk with family members frequently and roughly a fifth of those experiencing loneliness say they are in contact with family members in person or over the phone at least a few times a week. In each country, those who are lonely generally report communicating with friends and family less frequently than those who don’t report loneliness.

Table 3: Frequency of Communication With Family and Friends
	United States		United Kingdom		Japan
	Lonely	Not Lonely	Lonely	Not lonely	Lonely	Not lonely
Talk to family members at least a few times a week…
…in person	48%	59%	59%	69%	17%	27%
…over the phone	57	71	66	75	19	28
…through email, text, or social media	46	62	50	62	20	28
Talk to friends at least a few times a week…
…in person	57	74	60	73	25	27
…over the phone	57	62	48	58	13	23
…through email, text, or social media	61	66	54	66	34	34

Coping with Loneliness

There are a number of different ways people may cope with loneliness, some more positive than others. Across countries, the most commonly reported coping mechanisms were distracting oneself with television, or computer or video games and reliving memories from the past, with about seven in ten or more saying they almost always or sometimes do these things when they feel lonely. Majorities report talking to a friend or relative, browsing the internet or social media sites or exercising. On the more negative side, across countries, four in ten say they overeat at least sometimes when feeling lonely, a third or more say they at least sometimes smoke cigarettes or use other tobacco products when feeling lonely, and two in ten say they at least sometimes abuse alcohol or drugs.

Across countries, majorities say they have talked to someone about their feelings of loneliness, but still others say they haven’t talked to anyone about it. Most commonly, they report talking to a close friend or family member, but some report talking to a doctor or other health professional, a mental health professional, or a religious or spiritual advisor.