Table 1. Sample characteristics, and prevalence of loneliness across sociodemographic, COVID-19, social and health factors.
| Sample total | Low/no Loneliness | Loneliness | Unadjusted OR (CI) | ß | p | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N (%) | 1964 (100) | 1434 (73.4) | 530 (26.6) | |||
| SOCIODEMOGRAPHIC FACTORS | ||||||
| UK nation | .180* | |||||
| Northern Ireland | 23.4 | 76.7 | 23.3 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| England | 38.1 | 71.2 | 28.7 | 1.33 (1.02, 1.74) | 0.29 | .035 |
| Scotland | 36.2 | 72.3 | 27.7 | 1.27 (0.97, 1.66) | 0.24 | .088 |
| Wales | 2.3 | 76.1 | 23.9 | 1.04 (0.51, 2.11) | 0.04 | .921 |
| Gender | .911* | |||||
| Male | 29.6 | 73.1 | 26.9 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| Female | 70.4 | 73.4 | 26.6 | 1.02 (0.82, 1.26) | 0.16 | .889 |
| Age Group | < .001* | |||||
| 18–24 | 16.7 | 59.0 | 41.0 | 20.48 (4.92, 85.27) | 3.02 | < .001 |
| 25–34 | 33.4 | 71.8 | 28.2 | 11.61 (2.81, 48.01) | 2.45 | .001 |
| 35–44 | 23.9 | 78.0 | 22.0 | 8.30 (1.99, 34.55) | 2.12 | .004 |
| 45–54 | 14.6 | 74.8 | 25.2 | 9.92 (2.36, 41.65) | 2.29 | .002 |
| 55–64 | 8.4 | 79.4 | 20.6 | 7.66 (1.78, 32.93) | 2.04 | .006 |
| 65+ | 3.1 | 96.7 | 3.3 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| Employed | 71.9 | 75.1 | 24.9 | Ref (1.00) | .001* | |
| Not | 28.1 | 67.5 | 32.5 | 1.45 (1.17, 1.80) | 0.37 | .001 |
| Income | 0.79±0.71 | 0.86±.72 | 0.59±.65 | 0.57 (0.49, 0.66) | -0.56 | < .001ˆ |
| Educational attainment | 5.22±1.86 | 5.32±1.84 | 4.84±1.77 | 0.87 (0.83, 0.92) | -0.14 | < .001ˆ |
| COVID-19 FACTORS | ||||||
| Quarantined | 3.7 | 82.2 | 17.8 | 1.73 (0.94, 3.17) | 0.55 | .081* |
| Not | 96.3 | 72.8 | 27.2 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| Self-isolating | 58.9 | 71.0 | 29.0 | 1.28 (1.04, 1.57) | 0.25 | .020* |
| Not | 41.1 | 75.8 | 24.2 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| Self-isolating [High Risk] | .017* | |||||
| Yes | 9.2 | 66.1 | 33.9 | 1.61 (1.14, 2.28) | 0.48 | .007 |
| Other reasons | 49.7 | 71.9 | 28.1 | 1.22 (0.99, 1.52) | 0.20 | .062 |
| Not self-isolating | 41.1 | 75.8 | 24.2 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| Self-isolating [by order] | .049* | |||||
| Yes | 15.4 | 69.5 | 30.5 | 1.37 (1.02, 1.84) | 0.32 | .033 |
| Other reasons | 43.5 | 71.5 | 28.5 | 1.25 (1.00, 1.55) | 0.22 | .048 |
| Not self-isolating | 41.1 | 75.8 | 24.2 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| Caring [COVID-19] | 5.5 | 71.3 | 28.7 | 1.09 (0.71, 1.68) | 0.90 | .682* |
| Not | 94.5 | 73.1 | 26.9 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| Key worker | 37.4 | 74.6 | 25.4 | 0.88 (0.72, 1.08) | -0.13 | .229* |
| Not | 62.6 | 72.1 | 27.9 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| SOCIAL FACTORS | ||||||
| Social support | 21.64±5.79 | 22.75±5.22 | 18.65±6.19 | 0.88 (0.87, 0.90) | -0.13 | < .001ˆ |
| Relationship Status | < .001* | |||||
| Single/never married | 36.8 | 59.9 | 40.1 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| Married/co-habiting | 56.8 | 84.1 | 15.9 | 0.28 (0.23, 0.35) | -1.27 | < .001 |
| Separated/divorced | 5.2 | 53.1 | 46.9 | 1.32 (0.87, 2.02) | 0.28 | .195 |
| Widowed | 1.2 | 65.2 | 34.8 | 0.80 (0.33, 1.91) | -0.23 | .612 |
| Household size | ||||||
| Number of adults in the home | 2.22±0.96 | 2.25±.92 | 2.14±1.07 | 0.89 (0.80, 0.98) | -0.12 | .026ˆ |
| Number of children in the home | 1.63±0.95 | 1.66±.98 | 1.54±0.85 | 0.87 (0.78, 0.97) | -0.14 | .011ˆ |
| Living alone | 14.8 | 57.9 | 42.1 | 2.25 (1.74, 2.92) | 0.81 | < .001* |
| Not | 85.2 | 75.6 | 24.4 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| Urbanicity | .375* | |||||
| Rural | 21.9 | 71.1 | 28.9 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| Town | 44.0 | 74.5 | 25.5 | 0.84 (0.65, 1.09) | -0.17 | .192 |
| City | 34.2 | 72.3 | 27.8 | 0.94 (0.72, 1.23) | -0.06 | .670 |
| HEALTH FACTORS | ||||||
| Physical Health Condition | 24.8 | 69.3 | 30.7 | 1.27 (1.01, 1.59) | 0.24 | .036* |
| None | 75.2 | 74.2 | 25.8 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| Number of health conditions | 0.29±0.55 | 0.28±0.55 | 0.33±.058 | 1.18 (1.00, 1.41) | 0.17 | .057ˆ |
| Mental Health condition | 30.6 | 59.0 | 41.0 | 2.64 (2.14, 3.25) | 0.97 | < .001* |
| None | 69.4 | 79.2 | 20.8 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| Number of mental health conditions | 0.55±1.05 | 0.42±0.91 | 0.92±1.31 | 1.50 (1.37, 1.64) | 0.41 | < .001ˆ |
| Depression—clinical threshold | 34.0 | 49.2 | 50.8 | 5.98 (4.82, 7.42) | 1.79 | < .001* |
| Not | 66.0 | 85.3 | 14.7 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| Anxiety–clinical threshold | 30.3 | 52.2 | 47.8 | 4.18 (3.38, 5.17) | 1.43 | < .001* |
| Not | 69.7 | 82.0 | 18.0 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| Probable PTSD | 19.4 | 43.8 | 56.2 | 5.13 (4.05, 6.51) | 1.63 | < .001* |
| Not | 80.6 | 80.0 | 20.0 | Ref (1.00) | ||
| Emotion regulation difficulties | 42.43±13.22 | 39.17±11.67 | 51.20±13.14 | 1.08 (1.07, 1.09) | 0.74 | < .001ˆ |
| Sleep quality [general] | 2.22±0.79 | 2.10±.75 | 2.54±.81 | 2.03 (1.78, 2.32) | 0.71 | < .001ˆ |
| Sleep quality [COVID-19] | 2.47±0.84 | 2.34±.80 | 2.84±.81 | 2.13 (1.87, 2.43) | 0.76 | < .001ˆ |
Notes
* = X2 test
ˆ = independent samples t-test. Numerical values with standard deviation are mean scores, values without standard deviation are percentages. OR = unadjusted odds ratio. CI = 95% confidence intervals. ß = regression coefficient.