Abstract

Objectives

To effectively reduce loneliness in older adults, interventions should be based on firm evidence regarding risk factors for loneliness in that population. This systematic review aimed to identify, appraise and synthesise longitudinal studies of risk factors for loneliness in older adults.

Methods

Searches were performed in June 2018 in PsycINFO, Scopus, Sociology Collection and Web of Science. Inclusion criteria were: population of older adults (M = 60+ years at outcome); longitudinal design; study conducted in an OECD country; article published in English in a peer-review journal. Article relevance and quality assessments were made by at least two independent reviewers.

Results

The search found 967 unique articles, of which 34 met relevance and quality criteria. The Netherlands and the United States together contributed 19 articles; 17 analysed national samples while 7 studies provided the data for 19 articles. One of two validated scales was used to measure loneliness in 24 articles, although 10 used a single item. A total of 120 unique risk factors for loneliness were examined. Risk factors with relatively consistent associations with loneliness were: not being married/partnered and partner loss; a limited social network; a low level of social activity; poor self-perceived health; and depression/depressed mood and an increase in depression.

Conclusion

Despite the range of factors examined in the reviewed articles, strong evidence for a longitudinal association with loneliness was found for relatively few, while there were surprising omissions from the factors investigated. Future research should explore longitudinal risk factors for emotional and social loneliness.

中文翻译：

---

老年人孤独感纵向危险因素的系统评价

摘要

目标

为了有效减少老年人的孤独感，干预措施应基于有关该人群孤独感风险因素的确凿证据。这项系统评价旨在识别、评估和综合对老年人孤独感风险因素的纵向研究。

方法

2018 年 6 月在 PsycINFO、Scopus、Sociology Collection 和 Web of Science 中进行了搜索。纳入标准是：老年人口（M  = 60 岁以上）；纵向设计；在经合组织国家进行的研究；在同行评审期刊上以英文发表的文章。文章相关性和质量评估由至少两名独立评审员进行。

结果

搜索找到了 967 篇独特的文章，其中 34 篇符合相关性和质量标准。荷兰和美国共投稿 19 篇；17 项分析了国家样本，而 7 项研究提供了 19 篇文章的数据。在 24 篇文章中，使用两个经过验证的量表中的一个来衡量孤独感，尽管 10 篇使用了单个项目。总共检查了 120 个孤独的独特风险因素。与孤独相关的相对一致的风险因素是：未婚/未婚和失去伴侣；有限的社交网络；社会活动水平低；自我感觉健康不佳；和抑郁/抑郁情绪和抑郁症增加。

结论

尽管在审查的文章中检查了一系列因素，但在相对较少的情况下发现了与孤独感纵向关联的有力证据，而所调查的因素却令人惊讶地遗漏了。未来的研究应该探索情绪和社会孤独感的纵向风险因素。