Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.5559/di.20.2.09
Loneliness in Early Adolescence: Gender and Age Differences and Links with Social Relations
Ankica MEDVED
; Cetingrad
Gordana KERESTEŠ
; Filozofski fakultet, Zagreb
Abstract
The aim of the present study was to investigate gender and
age differences in loneliness among preadolescents and
young adolescents, and to examine the relationship between
loneliness and several indicators of the quality of social
relations (sociometric status, same-gender friendship
intimacy, and social support). The study encompassed 188
elementary school pupils in grades 5th to 8th, who filled out
the Short Form of the UCLA Loneliness Scale, Intimate
Friendship Scale, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social
Support, and Sociometric Questionnaire. Children reported a
relatively low level of loneliness, with boys feeling
significantly lonelier than girls. Among girls, older ones
reported higher loneliness than younger ones, while among
boys younger ones felt lonelier than older ones. Indicators of
the quality of social relations explained a similar amount of
variance in girls’ (11.1%) and boys’ (11.7%) loneliness.
However, predictors of loneliness differed for children of
different gender. Girls who felt lonelier perceived lower social
support and had better status in the classroom, while boys
with better status among classmates reported lower
loneliness.
Keywords
loneliness; adolescents; social relations; gender and age differences
Hrčak ID:
69566
URI
Publication date:
15.6.2011.
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