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Mental Health and Loneliness

Student’s Name

Department, Institutional Affiliation

Course Code: Course Name

Instructor’s Name

Due Date
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Mental Health and Loneliness

Insights on Mental Health and Loneliness

Currently, the upsurge of attention given to the issue of mental health and loneliness is

increasing exponentially across the medical, social, business enterprises, government ministries,

public health, and famous media outlets. According to the World Health Organization, mental

health problems and loneliness are considered as imminent concerns at the global scale, affecting

different countries. Presently, data on loneliness is primarily obtained from psychological survey

instruments. In one of the Australian surveys that involved 1,500 Victorian participants aged

between 12 and 25 years, more than half of that population was diagnosed to show signs of

loneliness. About 47% of the respondents acknowledged that loneliness was a major issue

affecting their well-being (Jenkins, Sanchez & Lidia, 2020). The main factor that has been

identified to contribute to the high prevalence of loneliness was depression. Majority of the

respondents argued that due to depression, they isolated themselves from the rest of society,

leading them to have a feeling of loneliness.

The issue of loneliness and mental health challenges has been considered as a major

public health problem that is affecting different people across populations, especially school-

going teenagers in Australia. The issue should raise an alarm in society due to the severe

consequences that it has on the productivity, performance, and satisfaction of students and

teenagers. Addressing the issue should be given priority since teenagers and youths have been

identified as a population that is vulnerable both to depression and loneliness. Loneliness has

been recognized to be a major factor that is affecting how teenagers and students form social

relationships. This has generally led to a decline in their life satisfaction since lonely teenagers

are reportedly identified to be less satisfied in life than their socially active counterparts (Dhingra
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et al., 2016). Consequently, mental health and loneliness lead to a diminished self-esteem and

self-regulation of the victims. Professional literature has argued that loneliness has a significant

negative impact on the mental and psychological well-being of individuals.

Teenagers and students experiencing loneliness and different mental health problems are

likely to display withdrawal symptoms. Social withdrawal is a common occurrence among

victims of loneliness and mental health conditions (Wang et al., 2017). In most studies,

participants described that they felt better when alone as compared to how they felt around other

people. Low self-esteem was identified as the main reason behind the withdrawal of the victims

experiencing loneliness and mental health challenges. Also, most teenagers have fear of being

judged and have developed a perception about the futility of explaining themselves to others.

This particular topic has been of interest to me since I am a victim of both loneliness and

mental health issues. Personally, I think that this social issue should be solved immediately due

to the detrimental consequences that the issue has on the well-being of the victims. Additionally,

the topic gives me a chance to explore a social issue that is affecting populations from different

cultural and ethnic background in contemporary society. Two motivational factors influenced my

interest in researching about this topic in contemporary setting. First, the literature that exists

about the connection between mental health and loneliness among teenagers and students is

significantly limited. This means that policymakers as well as other stakeholders lack appropriate

information regarding the issue, thus, influencing the strategies that are being implemented on

large scale to address the social issue. Second, current research has focused on the issue from a

general point of view involving the general public as participants. However, for this study,

teenagers and students are specifically identified as the ideal population for research about the

issue of loneliness and mental health.

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Inspiration

The topic provides an opportunity to evaluate a common social problem that is affecting a

specific population in society and goes unnoticed. Depression and loneliness are common

challenges among students and teenagers. Policymakers have not designed specific strategies that

aim at addressing how this issue affects this particular population. As a result, the topic presents

an opportunity to understand the factors contributing to high prevalence of the issue in

contemporary social setting and how the issue can be mitigated. One of the design precedents

that was crucial in this research was the study conducted by Achterbergh and colleagues. In their

study, the researchers used a qualitative meta-synthesis approach in evaluating available

information about the topic. Both quantitative and qualitative studies were incorporated in the

research to understand how the two concepts are connected and how they influence the target

population.

Synthesis of evidence from the research indicated that there is need to help teenagers and

students communicate more about their depressive and loneliness experiences. Cognitive

interventions are scientifically proven to provide positive outcomes when implemented as

measures to control the prevalence of loneliness and mental health issues. Another study that can

be replicated in future was conducted by Dhingra and colleagues. In this study, the researchers

focused on evaluating mental health and loneliness from a clinical perspective. The researcher

integrated findings from numerous studies and used the results to come up with interventions that

can be used to address the social issue. Some of the proposed solutions to the social issue

according to the findings include improving social skills, enhancing social support, and

increasing chances for social interactions.

Demographic
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Previous studies suggest that teenagers that experienced social isolation during their

childhood are likely to experience loneliness during their adolescent and early adulthood stages.

This implies that the issue of loneliness is connected to a person’s background and their

experience during their early years. Consequently, literature suggests that chronic peer-related

loneliness is a major contributor of depression among teenagers and young adults (Achterbergh

et al., 2020). The World Health Organization reported that mental health conditions accounted

for approximately 16% of the total global burden of diseases affecting the population aged

between 10 and 19 years. Evidence from previous literature opines that teenagers and students

are more likely to experience loneliness and depression as compared to older adults. The

prevalence of mental health issues and loneliness among this group is associated with the high

level of stress that teenagers and students are subjected to. Unlike the rest of the populations,

teenagers experience a lot of stress streaming from different sources which generally affects the

quality of life, leading to social isolation which ultimately leads to the feeling of loneliness.

According to a global survey that was conducted during the Covid-19 pandemic, the

findings showed that teenagers were 80% likely to show signs of anxiety and depression as

compared to older adults across countries such as the United States, France, and Belgium. The

pandemic disrupted the tuition calendar, leading to closure of school which even worsened the

stress level among teenagers. Stress has been identified as a leading factor contributing to this

growing prevalence. Students are exposed to stressful conditions both at school and at home

(Mcalpine, 2021). The results of the survey revealed that more than half of the participants

screened positive for depression. Some factors such as having assignments due midnight has

been identified as a causative agent of increase depression among students. Majority of students

do not share a good rapport with their teachers, leading to a deviation in social connection. As a
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result, the students might not seek any help, whether educational or personal from the teachers

for the fear of being turned down by the instructors. This in turn has led to an increase of

students suffering in silence without talking about their opinions.

Professional literature reports that teenagers and students are subjected to increased social

pressure to show connectedness, which is likely to lead them into more depression and

loneliness. Society expects that teenagers should display more social behaviors. Teenagers that

do not display such behaviors are likely to be stigmatized in society leading to the development

of loneliness which will consequently affect their mental well-being (Jenkins, Sanchez & Lidia,

2020). Furthermore, teenagers and students have argued that accessibility to help is another

challenge that is contributing to an increase in the prevalence of loneliness within the group.

Unlike adults, teenagers cannot afford quality care treatment from professionals on their own.

Inaccessibility of such critical services leads to reluctance of the population to talk about their

emotions and feelings. Today, more teenagers are afraid of being stigmatized due to the

perception that society holds about mental illness. As a result, the population prefers to keep

silent without seeking professional aid that can mitigate the severity associated with such

conditions.

Teenagers and students are likely to be victims of loneliness and mental health illness due

to the socio-structural adversities that they experience every day in their school and familial

contexts. The environmental surrounding is a critical determinant when it comes to mental health

outcomes. For instance, teenagers living in environments where the rate of crime is relatively

high are likely to become victims of loneliness since they are not likely to form social bonds with

other teenagers from the same region (Loades et al., 2020). This is one of the social-cultural

adversities that can have detrimental influence on the well-being of the target population. The
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identified factors when combined explain why there is a high prevalence of loneliness and

depression among teenagers and youth than there is across other populations in society.

Local Communities

As mentioned earlier, the neighborhood of upbringing plays a fundamental role in

shaping the desired outcome of the mental health of teenagers. While some neighborhoods will

discourage teenagers from forming social relationships, other promote such relationships in the

community. An ideal community is one that provides support to teenagers and students to

improve their mental health status and formation of social relationships. An effective community

is characterized by diversity and inclusion where all members of the community are valued. In

such a community, mitigation strategies focused on reducing the prevalence of loneliness and

depression have been implemented. Teenagers and students can access resources such as

professional support that can help in stabilizing their social relationships. An effective

community strives to alter the natural history of a specific medical condition that is affecting the

community. For example, in the case of mental illness, an effective community will integrate

strategies that focus on eliminating the severity of the challenge in the community to enhance

positive health outcomes. Communication in an effective community is paramount for attaining

positive health outcomes. In such a setting, there are outlined channels which are used to

communicate with members of the community regarding different aspects of life.

The topic of loneliness and mental health relates to my sub-topic of local villages.

Ideally, local villages are perceived to be communities with effective connections. This helps the

community members to build their identity, which in turn influences their self-image. The

concept of local villages can be applied in the context of the topic where communities can be
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encouraged to show more social support and connectedness as a way of addressing loneliness

which will in turn eliminate the problem of mental health issues.

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References

Achterbergh, L., Pitman, A., Birken, M., Pearce, E., Sno, H., & Johnson, S. (2020). The

experience of loneliness among young people with depression: a qualitative meta-

synthesis of the literature. BMC psychiatry, 20(1), 1-23. DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-020-02818-3

In this meta-synthesis analysis, the authors researched on the correlation between

loneliness and depression among youths. The findings showed a close correlation

suggesting that loneliness was directly related to a high prevalence of depression among

young people which affected their lives negatively. These findings significantly

contributed to the understanding of the relationship between mental health and loneliness

in the current research.

Dhingra, I., Rupani, K., Mahajan, P. T., Desai, D., & Sousa, A. D. (2016). Loneliness and mental

health: Critical clinical issues. Indian Journal of Mental Health, 3(1), 6-16. DOI:

10.30877/IJMH.3.1.2016.6-16

The study investigated the interplay between mental health and loneliness. The

researchers explored the different effects that loneliness had on the mental health of

different population in society. As such, the findings from this study played a crucial role

in understanding the current research topic since it gave context of the relationship

between mental health and loneliness.

Jenkins, J. H., Sanchez, G., & Lidia Olivas-Hernández, O. (2020). Loneliness, adolescence, and

global mental health: Soledad and structural violence in Mexico. Transcultural

psychiatry, 57(5), 673-687. DOI: 10.1177/1363461519880126

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In this article, the authors call into question the current claims made in public health

suggesting that loneliness is a problem with epidemic proportions that is affecting

adolescents. The findings suggested that loneliness, depression, and anxiety were major

mental health issues affecting contemporary adolescents. This information is critical in

understanding the suggested population regarding the research topic.

Loades, M. E., Chatburn, E., Higson-Sweeney, N., Reynolds, S., Shafran, R., Brigden, A., ... &

Crawley, E. (2020). Rapid systematic review: the impact of social isolation and

loneliness on the mental health of children and adolescents in the context of COVID-

19. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 59(11), 1218-

1239. doi: 10.1016/j.jaac.2020.05.009

The systematic review focused on how social isolation during the Covid-19 pandemic has

influenced the mental well-being of children and adolescents. The findings indicated that

children and adolescents experienced a high risk of depression and anxiety. This shows

that mental health and loneliness is a common problem that is affecting the identified

demographic.

Mcalpine, K. (2021, February 17). Depression, Anxiety, Loneliness Are Peaking in College

Students. Boston University. https://www.bu.edu/articles/2021/depression-anxiety-

loneliness-are-peaking-in-college-students/

The author of the article investigated the prevalence of depression, anxiety, and

loneliness among college students. This study was of specific importance to the current

research considering that college students was the target population that was selected for

the research. The findings of the article have helped in understanding the prevalence of

mental health issues among college students and how it is negatively impacting them.
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Wang, J., Lloyd-Evans, B., Giacco, D., Forsyth, R., Nebo, C., Mann, F., & Johnson, S. (2017).

Social isolation in mental health: a conceptual and methodological review. Social

psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology, 52(12), 1451-1461. DOI 10.1007/s00127-017-

1446-1

In this article, the researchers provide a clear framework for understanding the

relationship between social isolation and mental health. Considering that isolation is one

of the most common effects associated with mental health, the study will provide critical

information that will be used in investigating the influence of mental health and

loneliness on the identified population.