ArticleThe Gerontologist2019
Better Off Alone: Daily Solitude Is Associated With Lower Negative Affect in More Conflictual Social Networks.
Article in The Gerontologist, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 20 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
20 citing papers in PubMed.
- Grandchild contact and grandparents' positive and negative emotions in daily life: an analysis using self-report and language use data.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2026Article
- Daily sleep, social encounters, and momentary loneliness in late life.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2025Article
- Digital exclusion and loneliness in older people: panel data analysis of three longitudinal cohort studies.BMC geriatrics · 2025Article
- The advantages of seeing the silver lining: how valuing emotions moderates the link between ambivalent ties and daily health.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2025Article
- Impact of spousal congruence on emotional perception on solitude in older couples: a response surface analysis.Innovation in aging · 2025Article
- Ecological Momentary Assessment to Measure Social Connectedness in Older Adults: Integrative Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Review
- Momentary solitude and affective experiences: The moderating role of trait mindfulness.Applied psychology. Health and well-being · 2025Article
- The Significance of Social Connections and Health in Relation to Loneliness Experienced by Older Adults Living at Home: A Qualitative Study.Scandinavian journal of caring sciences · 2025Article
- Towards Healthy Aging through Semantic Enrichment.CEUR workshop proceedings. · 2025Article
- Daily Rumination Among Older Men and Women: The Role of Perceived Family and Nonfamily Social Partner Life Stress.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2024Article
- Enduring Bonds: Duration and Contact in Close Relationships in Late Life.The Gerontologist · 2024Article
- Balance between solitude and socializing: everyday solitude time both benefits and harms well-being.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Experiences of solitude in adulthood and old age: The role of autonomy.International journal of behavioral development · 2022Article
- Alternating time spent on social interactions and solitude in healthy older adults.British journal of psychology (London, England : 1953) · 2022Article
- Television Viewing, Physical Activity, and Loneliness in Late Life.The Gerontologist · 2022Article
- Older Adult's Marital Status, Conversation Frequency, and Well-Being in Everyday Life.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2022Article
- Functional Limitations, Social Integration, and Daily Activities in Late Life.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2021Article
- Social, Emotional, and Existential Loneliness: A Test of the Multidimensional Concept.The Gerontologist · 2021Article
- Empathy and Close Social Ties in Late Life.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2020Article
- A Care Paradox: The Relationship Between Older Adults' Caregiving Arrangements and Institutionalization and Mortality.Research on agingArticle
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND
objectivesOlder adults are often considered at risk for social isolation. Little is known, however, about how often older adults lack social contact (in person, phone, electronic) throughout the day, the implications of lacking contact (i.e., solitude), and whether the effects of solitude vary by the broader social context. RESEARCH DESIGN AND
methodsParticipants were from the Daily Experiences and Well-being Study (DEWS) which included 313 older adults (aged 65+) who completed baseline interviews followed by 5-6 days of ecological momentary assessments approximately every 3 hr.
resultsIndividuals reported having no social contact (i.e., solitude) on 11% of the occasions. Solitude predicted lower negative and positive affect on those occasions. The solitude-negative affect link varied by social network quality. Solitude predicted lower negative affect among individuals with more conflictual social networks but not among those with less conflictual networks. DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS: Overall, solitude may serve as an adaptive strategy for individuals embedded in demanding or irritating social contexts.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.