Loneliness

Seminar (B.A.) Loneliness from an Interdisciplinary Perspective

„Imagine there is a condition that makes a person prickly, depressed, and self-centered, and is associated with a 26% increase in the odds of premature mortality. Imagine too that around 1 in 3 people in America is affected by this condition, and in 1 in 12 is affected severely. The condition is typically reversible but commonsense solutions are not helpful. Income, education gender and ethnicity are not protective and the condition is contagious.” (Cacioppo, John & Cacioppo, Stephanie 2018).

Loneliness is a deeply human emotion. It describes the perceived lack of desired social relationships and is a phenomenon detached from objective social integration. Although not immediately harmful, chronically lonely individuals suffer significantly from their condition and have a greatly increased risk of developing psychological and physical consequences. These include depression, sleep disorders, high blood pressure, and a shorter life expectancy. Despite increased attention from media and politics in recent years, with newspapers like the New York Times, Washington Post, or FAZ already titling societal loneliness as an epidemic, there is still relatively little research in sociology on the causes and consequences of loneliness.

This seminar offers a basic introduction to loneliness research, the perceived lack of the social. We will explore theoretical and empirical work from social psychology and sociology to shed some light on several questions: What is loneliness? What are its causes? What are the known consequences, and how can we address this issue?

You find an examplary syllabus here: Syllabus