Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK.
J Ment Health. 2022 Aug;31(4):543-550. doi: 10.1080/09638237.2021.2022622. Epub 2022 Jan 3.
Loneliness impedes recovery from mental illness. Despite increased interest in loneliness in psychosis, qualitative methods are underused in clinical research on this topic.
We used qualitative interviews to explore loneliness among persons with schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSDs). We examined which aspects of living with psychosis were associated with the experience of loneliness, including symptomatology, social relationships, and disruptions in school/work.
Sixteen participants diagnosed with SSDs engaged in semi-structured, qualitative interviews about loneliness. Participants commented on current activities and social relationships, including their perceptions of the quantity, quality and types of relationships. Important demographic and clinical information was acquired through communication with participants and/or through medical record review. Thematic analysis was used to examine interview content.
Our analyses revealed four key topic areas and several sub-themes related to loneliness across participants, including aspects of the physical environment (e.g. financial limitations), social context (e.g. lacking a romantic partner), and psychological functioning (e.g. psychotic/symptoms) that impact lonely feelings. Participants commented on coping strategies to manage loneliness and provided suggestions for possible interventions.
Persons diagnosed with SSDs report significant and impactful feelings of loneliness. This study highlights the need for novel and effective treatments targeting loneliness in this population.
孤独会阻碍精神疾病的康复。尽管人们对精神病患者的孤独感越来越感兴趣，但在该主题的临床研究中，定性方法的使用仍不够充分。
我们使用定性访谈来探讨精神分裂症谱系障碍（SSDs）患者的孤独感。我们研究了与孤独感相关的生活方面，包括症状、社交关系和学业/工作中断，哪些方面与孤独感有关。
16 名被诊断为 SSD 的参与者参与了关于孤独感的半结构化定性访谈。参与者对当前的活动和社交关系发表了评论，包括他们对关系数量、质量和类型的看法。通过与参与者沟通和/或通过病历审查获得了重要的人口统计学和临床信息。使用主题分析来检查访谈内容。
我们的分析揭示了四个关键主题领域和几个与孤独感相关的子主题，包括物理环境方面（例如经济限制）、社会环境方面（例如缺乏浪漫伴侣）和心理功能方面（例如精神病/症状），这些方面会影响孤独感。参与者评论了应对孤独感的策略，并提出了可能的干预措施的建议。
被诊断为 SSD 的人报告了明显且影响深远的孤独感。这项研究强调了针对该人群孤独感的新型有效治疗方法的必要性。
