Young worst hit by loneliness despite craze for social media

LONELINESS is felt most intensely by young people, according to the largest ever survey, which also found that turning to Facebook does not help.

The survey of 55,000 people found that 16 to 24-year-olds experience loneliness more often than any other age group.

Two in five reported feeling lonely often or very often, compared with only 29 per cent aged 65 to 74 and 27 per cent of those aged 75 or older.

The survey – which asked people to answer a range of online questions on their mental well-being – found that people who report feeling lonely have more online-only Facebook friends than those who do not.

The survey was conducted by BBC Radio 4’s All in the Mind in conjunction with the Wellcome Trust. Claudia Hammond, the presenter of All in the Mind, told The Daily Telegraph that she believes the research points to an “epidemic of loneliness” while challenging the notion of Britain as a nation of isolated pensioners living alongside highly social, tech-savvy youngsters.

“I wondered whether there is something about the stress of modern life, or young people’s ability to cope with it, that makes them feel lonelier. Or is youth simply a time of life when people feel isolation most keenly?,” Hammond asked. “To help them to connect with others, young people today have social media. They are more connected than ever before. But this can bring its own problems. If you’re feeling lonely, looking at pictures of other people appearing to have endless fun isn’t going to help with those feelings of isolation.”

However, Prof Pam Qualter from the University of Manchester, which helped compile the research, said the fact that young people were reporting more intense feelings of loneliness could indicate that the issue is in fact one of learning to cope.

“You might not know at that age that you’re going to overcome this,” she said. “Throughout the life course, you begin to realise loneliness is a feeling that doesn’t last for ever. Younger people experience loneliness more intensely because it might be the first time they’ve experienced it at all.”

The programme, recorded in front of a live audience at Wellcome Collection, is broadcast tonight on Radio 4 at 8pm.