ArticleGlobalization and health2021
Feelings of loneliness and mental health needs and services utilization among Chinese residents during the COVID-19 epidemic.
Article in Globalization and health, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 30 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
30 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 65 citations in OpenAlex.
- Declining Time-Trend in Loneliness Levels Among Migrant Children in Urban China, 2006-2019: A Cross-Temporal Meta-Analysis of 40 Studies Published From 2006 to 2022.Depression and anxiety · 2024Pooled it
- Prevalence of Insomnia Symptoms in Older Chinese Adults During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Meta-Analysis.Frontiers in medicine · 2021Pooled it
- Factors Associated with Professional Mental Health Counseling Among Korean Adults: An Age-Stratified Analysis Using the Andersen Behavioral Model.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Making sense of mental health in later life: social network dynamics and service access.International journal of qualitative studies on health and well-being · 2025Article
- Mental Health Outcomes and Digital Service Utilization: A Comparative Analysis of Arab American and Arab/Middle Eastern International Students During the COVID-19 Recovery Period.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- The Association Between Internet Use and Co-occurring Health Care Needs: Cross-Sectional Study in China.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Article
- Posttraumatic stress symptoms among Chinese university students during the COVID-19 pandemic: Prevalence, correlates, and mental health help-seeking.World journal of psychiatry · 2025Article
- Article
- Delayed Access to Medical Care and Psychological Distress among Chinese Immigrants in Canada during the Pandemic.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Emotional loneliness, perceived stress, and academic burnout of medical students after the COVID-19 pandemic.Frontiers in psychology · 2024Article
- Adaptation of a Chinese Version of the Relational Needs Satisfaction Scale Based on Item Response Theory Among Chinese Adults Aged 18-30.Psychology research and behavior management · 2024Article
- Both people living in the COVID-19 epicenter and those who have recently left are at a higher risk of loneliness.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Marital-history differences in increased loneliness during the COVID-19 pandemic: A European study among older adults living alone.Archives of gerontology and geriatrics · 2023Article
- A health impact assessment of gender inequities associated with psychological distress during COVID19 in Australia's most locked down state-Victoria.BMC public health · 2023Article
- Shifts in patterns of help-seeking during the COVID-19 pandemic: The case of Hong Kong's younger generation.Social science & medicine (1982) · 2023Article
- The longitudinal relationship between hearing loss and cognitive decline in tonal language-speaking older adults in China.Frontiers in aging neuroscience · 2023Article
- The "loneliness epidemic", intersecting risk factors and relations to mental health help-seeking: A population-based study during COVID-19 lockdown in Canada.Journal of affective disorders · 2023Article
- Lockdown and psychological stress in Wuhan, China.PloS one · 2023Article
- The Psychological Network of Loneliness Symptoms Among Chinese Residents During the COVID-19 Outbreak.Psychology research and behavior management · 2023Article
- Social networks and the mental health among Chinese older adults: the mediating role of loneliness and moderating role of Internet use.Frontiers in public health · 2023Article
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Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundDue to the implementation of social distancing and quarantine measures, loneliness has been a major public health concern during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, few studies have examined loneliness in Chinese residents during the COVID-19 epidemic, as well as its associations with mental health needs and services utilization.
methodsThe present study was a cross-sectional survey during the COVID-19 outbreak in China. A total of 7741 adults were invited and completed an online self-administered questionnaire. The Chinese 12-item General Health Questionnaire was used to screen for common mental health problems, loneliness was measured with a single-item self-report question ("How often do you feel lonely in recent days?"), and two standardized questions were used to assess perceived needs for and use of mental health services.
resultsIn total, 24.2 % of the participants felt lonely in recent days. Age of 16-29 years (OR = 1.36, P = 0.020), marital status of never-married (OR = 1.47, P < 0.001), marital status of "others" (re-married, co-habiting, separated, divorced, and widowed) (OR = 1.72, P < 0.001), having infected family members or close relatives (OR = 1.64, P = 0.026), and having infected colleagues, friends, or classmates (OR = 1.62, P < 0.001) were significant correlates of loneliness. Rates of mental health needs (17.4 % vs. 4.9 %, P < 0.001) and services utilization (2.7 % vs. 1.0 %, P < 0.001) were significantly higher in lonely than not lonely participants. After adjusting for socio-demographic and epidemic characteristics and common mental health problems, loneliness was still significantly associated with mental health needs (OR = 2.50, P < 0.001) and services utilization (OR = 1.62, P = 0.020).
conclusionsFeelings of loneliness are prevalent among Chinese residents affected by the COVID-19 epidemic and the presence of loneliness is associated with high levels of mental health needs and greater services utilization. Effective measures aiming at preventing or reducing loneliness are potentially beneficial for the mental wellbeing of COVID-19-affected population and reducing the use of the limited mental health service resources during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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