Loneliness in older Chinese adults amid the COVID‐19 pandemic: Prevalence and associated factors

Abstract

AbstractIntroductionData on loneliness among older adults in China during the COVID‐19 pandemic are still scarce. This study aimed to examine the prevalence of loneliness and identify its associated factors among older Chinese adults during the COVID‐19 pandemic.MethodsDuring the COVID‐19 pandemic, 1268 older Chinese adults (aged 50+ years) were recruited through snowball sampling. The Chinese version of the validated six‐item De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale was used to assess participants' recent feelings of loneliness, and a cut‐off score of two or more was used to indicate the presence of loneliness.ResultsLoneliness was experienced by 37.9% of the participants in recent days. Factors significantly associated with loneliness included male sex (vs. female, OR: 1.62, p < .001), an education level of middle school and below (vs. college and above, OR: 1.50, p = .007), residing in the COVID‐19 epicenter (vs. other provinces, OR: 1.48, p = .004), concern about contracting COVID‐19 (OR: 1.68, p = .001), poor knowledge of COVID‐19 (OR: 2.39, p = .012), and physical health problems (OR: 1.65, p < .001).DiscussionLoneliness is common among older Chinese adults amid the COVID‐19 pandemic. Targeted intervention programs may be more effective in reducing loneliness among older adults who are worried about contracting COVID‐19, have poor COVID‐19 knowledge, and experience physical health problems.