Purpose: Emerging studies address adolescent loneliness a public health problem due to its negative associations with adverse health. However, evidence concerning adolescent loneliness and its correlation in nonwestern, low- and middle-income countries is scarce. This study examined the prevalence of loneliness and its correlates (i.e., sex, bullying victimization, and peer support) across 70 countries from five WHO regions.
Methods: Data were collected from the Global School-based Student Health Survey of children aged 13-17 (2003-2018) years. Loneliness was defined as feeling lonely most of the time or always in the past 12 months based on self-reports. The prevalence of loneliness was estimated, and multivariable logistic regression ascertained prevalence ratios of correlates by country. Meta-analysis was used to examine regional and overall pooled estimates.
Results: Among the 248,017 students included in the study, the overall prevalence of loneliness was 11.7% (95% confidence interval (CI): 10.6-12.7), with significant variations across countries. Girls (vs. boys prevalence ratio (PR = 1.4 95% CI: 1.3-1.4), students who experienced bullying victimization (PR = 2.2, 95% CI: 2.1-2.3), and students who reported a lack of close friends (PR = 1.8, 95% CI: 1.7-1.9) were at increased risk of experiencing loneliness. There was significant heterogeneity between countries for sex and lack of close friends but not for bullying victimization.
Discussion: Adolescent loneliness is prevalent globally, especially in Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean. The considerable heterogeneity in its prevalence and correlates suggest that tailoring to the country context may benefit policy initiatives. Bullying may be a common intervention target in all countries.
Keywords: Adolescent; Bullying victimization; Global health; Loneliness; Peer support.
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