ArticlePsychology and aging2019
Are U.S. older adults getting lonelier? Age, period, and cohort differences.
Article in Psychology and aging, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 67 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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
67 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Systematic review and meta-analysis of mechanistic loneliness interventions for older adults.Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences · 2025Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Prevalence of loneliness amongst older people in high-income countries: A systematic review and meta-analysis.PloS one · 2021Pooled it
- Big smile, small self: Awe walks promote prosocial positive emotions in older adults.Emotion (Washington, D.C.) · 2022Trial
- COVID-19 Impact on Health Behaviors and Survey Engagement in Older African Americans: Longitudinal Cohort Study.JMIR formative research · 2026Observational
- Social interactions and loneliness in daily life: A study of younger adults and cognitively diverse older adults.Developmental psychology · 2026Article
- Daily closeness discrepancies and marital interaction quality in the context of chronic pain: mediating effect of loneliness.The Gerontologist · 2026Article
- How social media use and abuse are related to social cognition and loneliness in older adults.European journal of ageing · 2026Article
- How Race, Gender, and Cohort Shape Social Isolation and Loneliness in Older Americans.Journal of applied gerontology : the official journal of the Southern Gerontological Society · 2026Article
- Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Associations Among Loneliness, Depression/Anxiety, and the Subjective and Chronological Age Difference in Older Adults.Journal of applied gerontology : the official journal of the Southern Gerontological Society · 2026Article
- The Arabic Lubben Social Network Scale-6: Psychometric Validation, Measurement Invariance, and Social Support Profiles in Arabic-Speaking Older Adults.European journal of investigation in health, psychology and education · 2026Article
- Uncovering mechanisms of historical change in midlife loneliness across the United States and Europe: a focus on physical activity, health conditions, and wealth.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2026Article
- Article
- Social isolation, loneliness, genetic susceptibility, and the hazard of incident osteoporosis.International journal of surgery (London, England) · 2026Article
- Loneliness and all-cause mortality in the United States.PloS one · 2026Article
- The Role of Family Interaction Frequency on Depressive Symptoms in Korean Older Adults Aged ≥80 and Living Alone.Journal of preventive medicine and public health = Yebang Uihakhoe chi · 2026Article
- Psychosocial Profiles of Older Adults by Dentition Status and Dental Utilisation History.Community dentistry and oral epidemiology · 2025Article
- Loneliness in Retirement.Medeniyet medical journal · 2025Article
- Social Well-Being among Rural County Fair Attendees: Results from a Pilot Study.Rural mental health · 2025Article
- Lonely and connected in emerging adulthood: The ambivalence of sociality in a time of transitions.PloS one · 2025Article
7 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Media portrayals of a loneliness "epidemic" are premised on an increase in the proportion of people living alone and decreases in rates of civic engagement and religious affiliation over recent decades. However, loneliness is a subjective perception that does not correspond perfectly with objective social circumstances. In this study, we examined whether perceived loneliness is greater among the Baby Boomers-individuals born 1948-1965-relative to those born 1920-1947 and whether older adults have become lonelier over the past decade (2005-2016). We used data from the National Social Life, Health and Aging Project and from the Health and Retirement Study collected during 2005-2016 to estimate differences in loneliness associated with age, birth year, and survey time point. Overall, loneliness decreased with age through the early 70s, after which it increased. We found no evidence that loneliness is substantially higher among the Baby Boomers or that it has increased over the past decade. Loneliness is, however, associated with poor health, living alone or without a spouse-partner, and having fewer close family and friends, which together accounted for the overall increase in loneliness after age 75. Although these data do not support the idea that older adults are becoming lonelier, the actual number of lonely individuals may increase as the Baby Boomers age into their 80s and beyond. Our results suggest that attention to social factors and improving health may help to mitigate this. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).
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