Akhter-Khan Samia C, Au Rhoda
Department of Psychology, Humboldt University of Berlin, 10117 Berlin, Germany.
Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, Duke University Graduate School, NC 27705, USA.
Adv Geriatr Med Res. 2020;2(3). doi: 10.20900/agmr20200016. Epub 2020 Jun 17.
Loneliness has drawn increasing attention over the past few decades due to rising recognition of its close connection with serious health issues, like dementia. Yet, researchers are failing to find solutions to alleviate the globally experienced burden of loneliness.
This review aims to shed light on possible reasons for why interventions have been ineffective. We suggest new directions for research on loneliness as it relates to precision health, emerging technologies, digital phenotyping, and machine learning.
Current loneliness interventions are unsuccessful due to (i) their inconsideration of loneliness as a heterogeneous construct and (ii) not being targeted at individuals' needs and contexts. We propose a model for how loneliness interventions can move towards finding the right solution for the right person at the right time. Taking a precision health approach, we explore how transdisciplinary research can contribute to creating a more holistic picture of loneliness and shift interventions from treatment to prevention.
We urge the field to rethink metrics to account for diverse intra-individual experiences and trajectories of loneliness. Big data sharing and evolving technologies that emphasize human connection raise hope for realizing our model of precision health applied to loneliness. There is an urgent need for precise, integrated, and theory-driven interventions that focus on individuals' needs and the subjective burden of loneliness in the ageing context.
在过去几十年里，孤独感因其与痴呆症等严重健康问题的密切联系日益受到关注。然而，研究人员尚未找到减轻全球范围内孤独负担的解决方案。
本综述旨在阐明干预措施无效的可能原因。我们为孤独感研究提出新方向，涉及精准健康、新兴技术、数字表型分析和机器学习。
当前的孤独干预措施之所以不成功，是因为（i）它们没有将孤独视为一种异质性结构，（ii）没有针对个人需求和背景。我们提出一个模型，说明孤独干预措施如何能够朝着在正确的时间为正确的人找到正确解决方案的方向发展。采用精准健康方法，我们探讨跨学科研究如何有助于更全面地了解孤独感，并将干预措施从治疗转向预防。
我们敦促该领域重新思考衡量标准，以考虑孤独感在个体内部的多样体验和轨迹。强调人际联系的大数据共享和不断发展的技术，为实现适用于孤独感的精准健康模型带来了希望。迫切需要精确、综合且基于理论的干预措施，这些措施应关注个体需求以及老龄化背景下孤独感的主观负担。
