Predictors of chronic loneliness during adolescence: a population-based cohort study

Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health

Research

Kazuhiro Suzuki¹  Noriko Cable²  Mariko Hiraiwa-Hasegawa³  Shuntaro Ando⁴  Kiyoto Kasai⁵  Nao Oikawa⁶  Satoshi Usami⁷  Kaori Baba⁸  Mariko Hosozawa⁹  Hiroyasu Iso^1,10  Naomi Nakajima^1,11  Kaori Endo^1,11  Syudo Yamasaki^1,11  Atsushi Nishida^1,11  Mitsuhiro Miyashita^1,11  Junko Niimura^1,11  Daniel Stanyon^1,11  Miharu Nakanishi^1,12 

[1] Department of Community Mental Health, Shinshu University School of Medicine, Matsumoto, Japan;Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London, London, UK;Department of Evolutionary Studies of Biosystems, The Graduate University for the Advanced Studies, Kanagawa, Japan;Department of Neuropsychiatry, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan;Department of Neuropsychiatry, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan;The International Research Center for Neurointelligence, The University of Tokyo Institutes for Advanced Study, Tokyo, Japan;Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Juntendo University, Tokyo, Japan;Graduate School of Education, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan;Graduate School of Nursing Science, St. Luke’s International University, Tokyo, Japan;Institute for Global Health Policy Research, Bureau of International Health Cooperation, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, 1-21-1 Toyama, 162-8655, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, Japan;Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Juntendo University, Tokyo, Japan;Institute for Global Health Policy Research, Bureau of International Health Cooperation, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, 1-21-1 Toyama, 162-8655, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, Japan;Public Health, Department of Social Medicine, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka, Japan;Research Center for Social Science and Medicine, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science, Tokyo, Japan;Research Center for Social Science and Medicine, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science, Tokyo, Japan;Department of Psychiatric Nursing, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan;

关键词: Loneliness;    Adolescence;    Trajectory;    Self-harm;    Suicidal ideation;    Bullying victimization;    Parental psychological distress;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s13034-022-00545-z

 received in 2022-08-27, accepted in 2022-12-13,  发布年份 2022

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundAdolescent loneliness is a growing public health issue owing to its adverse health impact. Although adolescent loneliness is common, its trajectories can show distinct patterns over time. However, there is limited knowledge regarding their determinants, particularly for chronic loneliness. We aimed to determine the predictors of loneliness trajectories across early-to-mid adolescence and examine their association with later suicidality.MethodsData were collected from 3165 participants from the population-based Tokyo Teen Cohort. Participants reported their loneliness at 10, 12, 14, and 16 years. Loneliness trajectories were identified using latent class growth analysis. We examined the predictive role of bullying victimization and parental psychological distress at age 10 via a multinomial logistic regression. Sociodemographic and child-related factors (i.e., chronic health conditions and cognitive delay) were included as covariates. The association between the trajectories, self-harm, and suicidal ideation by age 16 was investigated using Poisson regression.ResultsFour trajectories were identified: “consistently low” (2448, 77.3%), “moderate–decreasing” (185, 5.8%), “moderate–increasing” (508, 16.1%), and “consistently high” (24, 0.8%). Taking “consistently low” as a reference, experiences of bullying victimization predicted all the remaining trajectories [adjusted relative risk ratio 1.64, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.18–2.28 for “moderate–decreasing,” 1.88, 1.52–2.33 for “moderate–increasing,” and 4.57, 1.97–10.59 for “consistently high”]. Parental psychological distress predicted the “moderate–increasing” (1.84, 1.25–2.71) and “consistently high” (5.07, 1.78–14.42) trajectories. The “consistently high” trajectory showed the greatest risk for self-harm and suicidal ideation (adjusted relative risk ratio 6.01, 95% CI 4.40–8.22; 2.48, 1.82–3.37, respectively); however, the “moderate–increasing” and “moderate–decreasing” trajectories were also at increased risk (moderate–increasing: 2.71, 2.23–3.30 for self-harm, 1.93, 1.69–2.19 for suicidal ideation; moderate–decreasing: 2.49, 1.91–3.26 for self-harm, 1.59, 1.33–1.91 for suicidal ideation).ConclusionsBullying victimization and parental psychological distress at age 10 were independent determinants of increased and chronic loneliness trajectories across early-to-mid adolescence. Compared with “consistently low,” all other loneliness trajectories were associated with an increased risk of adolescent suicidality. Interventions targeting adolescent loneliness should include approaches to mitigate bullying and parental psychological distress. These strategies may help prevent adolescent suicidality.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s) 2022

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