A study by Aya Toyoshima, a lecturer at the Faculty of Human Sciences, Shimane University, and Takashi Kusumi, a professor at the Graduate School of Education, Kyoto University, revealed that elderly people who have a strong tendency to enjoy loneliness have low negative emotions.
According to Kyoto University, Toyoshima and his colleagues conducted a web-based survey of 65 elderly people aged 80 to 210 and mailed 276 people for analysis.
As a result, the tendency to prefer loneliness is "I just want to be alone (need loneliness)" and "I enjoy my time alone and prefer to rest in a quiet place (enjoy loneliness)". , "I want to be alone to concentrate on my work (evaluate the productivity of loneliness)".
Of these, those with a strong tendency to enjoy loneliness had low negative emotions, and those with a strong tendency to evaluate loneliness productivity had high positive emotions and life satisfaction. All three factors were associated with a high degree of loneliness, and the effect of loneliness preference on subjective well-being was partial.
People who like loneliness have traditionally been considered to have poor sociability and social skills, but as the corona sickness continues for a new lifestyle, it can be an opportunity to think of ways to deal with loneliness.Toyoshima and his colleagues believe that it is necessary to continue the investigation to find out how loneliness-loving lifestyles and behaviors affect physical and mental health.
Paper information:[Innovation in Aging] Examining the relationship between preference for solitude and subjective well-being among Japanese older adults