Social isolation loneliness and depression in you

Authors: Timothy Matthews Andrea Danese Jasmin Wertz Candice L Odgers Antony Ambler Terrie E Moffitt Louise Arseneault

Publish Date: 2016/02/03

Volume: 51, Issue: 3, Pages: 339-348

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Abstract

We used data from the age18 wave of the Environmental Risk Longitudinal Twin Study a birth cohort of 1116 samesex twin pairs born in England and Wales in 1994 and 1995 Participants reported on their levels of social isolation loneliness and depressive symptoms We conducted regression analyses to test the differential associations of isolation and loneliness with depression Using the twin study design we estimated the proportion of variance in each construct and their covariance that was accounted for by genetic and environmental factorsSocial isolation and loneliness were moderately correlated r = 039 reflecting the separateness of these constructs and both were associated with depression When entered simultaneously in a regression analysis loneliness was more robustly associated with depression We observed similar degrees of genetic influence on social isolation 40  and loneliness 38  and a smaller genetic influence on depressive symptoms 29  with the remaining variance accounted for by the nonshared environment Genetic correlations of 065 between isolation and loneliness and 063 between loneliness and depression indicated a strong role of genetic influences in the cooccurrence of these phenotypesSocially isolated young adults do not necessarily experience loneliness However those who are lonely are often depressed partly because the same genes influence loneliness and depression Interventions should not only aim at increasing social connections but also focus on subjective feelings of lonelinessSocial relationships are a fundamental component of human life A network of positive social relationships provides a source of support meaning and guidance which can influence longterm trajectories of health outcomes 1 The absence of these relationships—social isolation—is a situation that many people experience at some point in their lives with potential implications for their health and wellbeing 2 3 Furthermore beyond the objective absence of social relationships are differences in the way people perceive their social environments The feeling that one’s desired quality and quantity of social connections are not being fulfilled—loneliness—constitutes an adversity in its own right In the present study we examined the separateness of social isolation and loneliness and their differential associations with depressive symptoms Further using twin data we investigated the underlying genetic and environmental influences that may account for some of these associationsSocial isolation is a state of estrangement in which social connections are limited or absent Loneliness on the other hand is a subjective feeling of distress arising when social connections are perceived to be inadequate or unfulfilling 4 5 6 Crucially although isolation and loneliness tend to cooccur they can also be experienced independently of one another it does not follow that isolated individuals necessarily feel lonely nor does an abundance of social connections preclude one from experiencing loneliness 7 8 Thus although there is overlap between these two constructs there are important conceptual distinctions between them It is therefore important to incorporate measures of both isolation and loneliness without treating them as interchangeable 5Loneliness is a strong risk factor for depression over and above measures of objective social connection 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Although the prevalence of loneliness varies with age its association with depression remains stable across the lifespan 16 17 However the nature of loneliness may vary at different stages of life as individuals’ social needs shift in focus 18 During the transition from adolescence to early adulthood high value is attached both to close friendships and to romantic relationships Loneliness is particularly prevalent at this stage of life 17 18 19 making young adulthood an interesting period in its own right for the study of loneliness and its association with social isolation and depression We anticipate that feelings of loneliness will cooccur with greater social isolation but that the separateness of these constructs will be reflected in only a modest association between the two Further based on the conceptualisation of loneliness as an emotional state in contrast to the more circumstantial nature of isolation we expect that loneliness will have the more robust association with depressive symptomsThe associations between isolation and loneliness and between loneliness and depression may reflect common underlying genetic or environmental influences which contribute to the cooccurrence of these phenomena Geneticallyinformative studies have estimated that approximately 40–50  of the variance in loneliness is accounted for by genetic factors 20 21 22 23 The genetic contribution to loneliness has been represented in an evolutionary framework in which loneliness is an adaptive response to social disconnection that provides the impetus to reintegrate with social groups 9 This suggests that social isolation is a situation that arises from the environment and that it is the individual’s response that is genetically influenced However social isolation itself shows a similar degree of genetic influence to loneliness 24 raising the possibility that some of the same heritable characteristics may be involved in both of these experiences To date however no multivariate behavioural genetic studies have been carried out to estimate the extent to which the associations between isolation loneliness and depression are explained by common genetic or environmental influences Such evidence would be informative from a clinical practice point of view as geneticallydriven associations would suggest that interventions to reduce loneliness and associated depressive symptoms should take individuals’ social perceptions into account rather than focusing efforts purely on increasing opportunities for social participation

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