Loneliness and subjective health complaints among school-aged children

Aim: The first aim of this study was to explore the prevalence of loneliness and subjective health complaints (SHCs) among school-aged children in Finland. The second aim was to analyse to what extent perceived loneliness explains any variance in SHCs among school-aged children. Method: A representa...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Scandinavian journal of public health 2018-02, Vol.46 (20_suppl), p.87-93
Main Authors: Lyyra, Nelli, Välimaa, Raili, Tynjälä, Jorma
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Age Distribution
Child
Diagnostic Self Evaluation
Female
Finland - epidemiology
Health Surveys
Humans
Loneliness - psychology
Male
Psychophysiologic Disorders - epidemiology
Psychophysiologic Disorders - psychology
Sex Distribution
Students - psychology
Students - statistics & numerical data
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Summary:Aim: The first aim of this study was to explore the prevalence of loneliness and subjective health complaints (SHCs) among school-aged children in Finland. The second aim was to analyse to what extent perceived loneliness explains any variance in SHCs among school-aged children. Method: A representative sample of 5925 Finnish children and adolescents from grades 5 (Mage=11.8 years), 7 (Mage=13.8) and 9 (Mage=15.8) completed the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) survey. Descriptive statistics were used to examine the prevalence of health complaints and loneliness. Structural equation modelling was used to test how strongly loneliness was associated with SHCs. Results: The prevalence of loneliness and SHCs was higher among girls and increased with age. Loneliness was a significant predictor of health complaints, especially of psychological symptoms among girls and among ninth grade students. Conclusions: The findings indicate that loneliness is a major risk to the health and well-being of school-aged children. The strong association between loneliness and SHCs highlights the importance of active preventive actions to reduce loneliness.
ISSN:1403-4948
1651-1905
DOI:10.1177/1403494817743901