Psychology of Loneliness: New Research

In this compilation, the authors begin by discussing veterans’ loneliness post-war, delineating this experience’s developmental course and the underlying relational deficits at its infrastructure throughout that course. The authors also compare the characteristics of this loneliness to those of other types of loneliness, highlighting the necessity of understanding the veteran’s experience as a specific form of loneliness. Next, developmental change in elderly people linked to loneliness and preference for solitude are examined through findings of recent studies, and reconsidering loneliness and the positive aspects of solitude. Preference for solitude is similarly examined. One chapter examines loneliness and suicide through Aaron Becks cognitive behavioral theory and largely through Erik Ericksons theory of psychosocial development. Intervention strategies to address loneliness and suicide are studied, and recommendations for clinical practice and future areas of study are presented. Lastly, a study is presented focusing on determinants of loneliness among Romanian migrants living in Portugal. The goal of the study was to answer two questions: (1) What influences do acculturation problems have on loneliness? (2) What influences does adaptation to the society of settlement have on loneliness?