Relationship of social and emotional loneliness and preference for solitude with purpose in life

Usamljenost je neugodno, averzivno i bolno iskustvo koje se javlja kada je mreža socijalnih odnosa pojedinca deficitarna, ili u svojoj kvaliteti, ili kvantiteti. Istraživanja pokazuju kako je usamljenost važan indikator subjektivne te psihološke dobrobiti, u koju spada i doživljaj smisla života. S druge strane, postoji samoća kao stanje ili situacija kada smo sami. Osobe koje imaju visoku preferenciju za samoću svojevoljno odabiru biti same te često percipiraju vrijeme provedeno u samoći kao pozitivno iskustvo. Stoga, za razliku od usamljenosti, takva preferirana samoća ne bi trebala biti negativno povezana s indikatorima dobrobiti. S obzirom na navedeno, cilj ovog istraživanja je bio, na prigodnom uzorku studenata, ispitati povezanost između emocionalne i socijalne usamljenosti te preferirane samoće s jedne i doživljaja smisla života s druge strane te utvrditi razlike s obzirom na spol, godinu studija (brucoši u odnosu na studente viših godina) te status ljubavne veze. U istraživanju je sudjelovalo 160 studentica i studenata Sveučilišta u Zadru različitih studijskih usmjerenja pri čemu su rezultati prikupljeni primjenom upitnika tipa papir-olovka. Upitnik se sastojao od sljedećih skala: Skala socijalne i emocionalne usamljenosti, Adaptirana skala preferirane samoće i Skala smisla života. U ovom istraživanju utvrđena je veća socijalna usamljenost i usamljenost u ljubavi kod mladića u odnosu na djevojke, ali nisu utvrđene spolne razlike u usamljenosti u obitelji, doživljaju smisla života te preferiranoj samoći. Također, studenti koji su u ljubavnoj vezi doživljavaju manju usamljenost u ljubavi, veći doživljaj smisla života i manje preferiraju samoću u odnosu na studente koji nisu u vezi. Nisu utvrđene razlike u socijalnoj usamljenosti i usamljenosti u obitelji s obzirom na status romantične veze. Nadalje, brucoši su usamljeniji u ljubavi i manje preferiraju samoću u odnosu na starije studente, ali nije utvrđena razlika u socijalnoj usamljenosti, usamljenosti u obitelji i doživljaju smisla života između brucoša i starijih studenata. Preferirana samoća je umjereno pozitivno korelirala s usamljenošću u ljubavi na oba poduzorka mladića i djevojaka, ali nije korelirala sa ostalim tipovima usamljenosti. Nadalje, utvrđena je umjerena negativna povezanost između sva tri tipa usamljenosti i doživljaja smisla života. I na kraju, preferirana samoća je nisko negativno korelirala s doživljajem smisla života samo kod studentica, dok kod studenata nije utvrđena značajna povezanost.Loneliness is an unpleasant, aversive and painful experience that occurs when the network of social relationships of an individual is deficient either in quality or quantity. Research has shown that loneliness is an important indicator of subjective and psychological well-being, which includes purpose in life. On the other hand, there is solitude as a state or situation when we are alone. People who have a high preference for solitude choose to be alone and often perceive the time spent in solitude as a positive experience. Therefore, unlike loneliness, preference for solitude should not be negatively associated with indicators of well-being. Given the above, the aim of this study was to examine the correlation between emotional and social loneliness and the preference for solitude on the one side and the purpose in life on the other side and to determine the differences with regard to gender, year of study (freshmen contrary to students of senior years) and romantic relationship status. 160 students of different study groups from the University of Zadar participated in the study and the results were collected using a paper-pencil questionnaire. The questionnaire was constisted of the following scales: Social and Emotional Loneliness Scale, Adapted Preference for Solitude Scale and Purpose in Life Scale. In this research, greater social loneliness and loneliness in love were found in males compared to females, but no gender differences were found in family loneliness, purpose in life and preference for solitude. Also, students who have a romantic partner experience less loneliness in love, higher purpose in life and have lower preference for solitude compared to students who have not have romantic partner. There were no differences in social and family loneliness due to the status of romantic relationship. Furthermore, freshmen experience greater loneliness in love and have lower preference for solitude than senior students, but there were no differences in social loneliness, family loneliness and purpose in life between freshmen and senior students. Preference for solitude correlated positively and moderately with loneliness in love for both males and females, but did not correlate with other types of loneliness. Furthermore, a moderate negative correlation has been established between all three types of loneliness and purpose in life. Lastly, low negative correlation was found between preference for solitude and purpose in life only among females, while in males no significant relationship was found