Mental Well-being and Perception of Loneliness Among Men in Poland

Abstract

Abstract Background: Mental well-being is defined as subjective well-being, characterized by an emotional and cognitive evaluation of one's life that leads to high life satisfaction and low levels of negative emotions. It is estimated that in Poland in 2017, 2.4% of men suffered from depression. Research findings confirm that individuals with a high sense of loneliness often face mental health issues. Loneliness is a predictor of the likelihood of depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts. The aim of this study was to assess the mental well-being in a group of men in Poland. Methods: The study was conducted on a representative sample of 438 men who completed a survey through an online portal using the Computer-Assisted Web Interviewing (CAWI) technique. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS-M) and the UCLA Loneliness Scale (R-UCLA) were used to assess mental well-being. The average age of the participating men was 45.61±15.64 years. Results: On the HADS-M scale, participants scored an average of 13.91±9.35 points. Anxiety disorders were identified in 21.91% of the participants on the anxiety subscale, and depressive disorders in 12.55% on the depression subscale. On the loneliness scale, participants scored an average of 40.50±10.78 points. A moderately high and very high sense of loneliness was found in 21.00% and 2.30% of the participants, respectively. Conclusions : In this study, one fifth of the participants experienced anxiety disorders, and every tenth man showed depressive disorders. Every fifth man experienced a moderately high sense of loneliness. The main predictor of depression symptoms and higher levels of loneliness was the poor financial situation of the participants and a lack of financial decisiveness.