VARIABLES AFFECTING LONELINESS AMONG INDIVIDUALS UNDERGOING TREATMENT IN ALCOHOL REHABILITATION CENTERS

This study assessed loneliness of alcoholic subjects in relation to age, sex, education, socio-economic status, adequacy of income, religiosity, marital status, state of health, number of close friends, ease in making friends, frequency of participating in social activities, employment status, job satisfaction, self-esteem, housing situation, history of alcoholism in family, number of years alcohol has been consumed and feeling of happiness during the past year. The study also examined the mean differences in the extent of loneliness encountered by the alcoholic subjects and subjects from 11 other populations studied at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Questionnaires were distributed to 152 individuals undergoing treatment at alcohol rehabilitation centers in Lincoln-Nebraska. The sample consisted of 92 males and 60 females between the age of 19-75 years. Statistical differences were found to exist for these variables: age, sex, marital satisfaction, history of alcoholism in the family and happiness during past year. Younger subjects were found to be more lonely. Females had significantly higher loneliness scores. Respondents who had a high level of marital satisfaction were significantly less lonely. Individuals who indicated a history of alcoholism in their families had significantly higher loneliness scores and subjects who stated that they had been happy during the past year were found to be less lonely. A significant negative relationship existed between loneliness scores and these variables: health, job satisfaction, self-esteem and years of alcohol consumption. Conversely, a significant positive relationship was found between loneliness scores and ease in making friends. No statistical significant differences were found for the following variables: education, socio-economic status, adequacy of income, religiosity, marital status, number of close friends, employment status, and housing situation. The alcoholic subjects were found to be one of the most lonely samples studied when compared to the 11 other populations. Only one population, i.e., the low-income single adolescent mothers had higher mean loneliness scores when compared to the alcoholic sample