School of Economics, Hiroshima University, 1-2-1 Kagamiyama Higashihiroshima, Hiroshima 739-8525, Japan.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Jul 25;18(15):7871. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18157871.
The precautionary measures and uncertainties surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic have serious psychological impacts on peoples' mental health. We used longitudinal data from Hiroshima University to investigate loneliness before and during the pandemic among older and younger people in Japan. We provide evidence that loneliness among both older and younger people increased considerably during the pandemic. Although loneliness among younger people is more pervasive, the magnitude of increase in loneliness during the pandemic is higher among older people. Our logit regression analysis shows that age, subjective health status, and feelings of depression are strongly associated with loneliness before and during the pandemic. Moreover, household income and financial satisfaction are associated with loneliness among older people during the pandemic while gender, marital status, living condition, and depression are associated with loneliness among younger people during the pandemic. The evidence of increasing loneliness during the pandemic is concerning for a traditionally well-connected and culturally collectivist society such as Japan. As loneliness has a proven connection with both physical and mental health, we suggest immediate policy interventions to provide mental health support for lonely people so they feel more cared for, secure, and socially connected.
新冠疫情大流行带来的预防措施和不确定性对人们的心理健康产生了严重的心理影响。我们使用来自广岛大学的纵向数据，调查了日本老年人和年轻人在大流行前后的孤独感。我们有证据表明，在大流行期间，老年人和年轻人的孤独感都大大增加。尽管年轻人的孤独感更为普遍，但在大流行期间，老年人的孤独感增加幅度更大。我们的逻辑回归分析表明，年龄、主观健康状况和抑郁感与大流行前后的孤独感密切相关。此外，家庭收入和财务满意度与大流行期间老年人的孤独感有关，而性别、婚姻状况、生活状况和抑郁感与大流行期间年轻人的孤独感有关。在像日本这样一个传统上联系紧密、文化上注重集体主义的社会中，孤独感在大流行期间不断增加令人担忧。由于孤独感与身心健康都有密切的联系，我们建议立即采取政策干预措施，为孤独者提供心理健康支持，让他们感到更受关注、安全和社交联系。
