INtegrating loneliness mitigation measures in pandemic management plans: An interdisCiplinary in-depth expLoration of psychologically and ethically sUitable interventions to DecreasE social isolation [INCLUDE]
The project is part of the National Research Programme 80: "Covid-19 in Society" and founded by the Swiss National Science Foundation
Background
Loneliness and its mitigation need be the focus of further research. Already before the pandemic, between 1/5-1/3 of the people suffered from loneliness. It is a serious risk for mental and physical health. There is a need to include loneliness prevention and alleviation interventions (LPAIs) in pandemic management plans (PMPs) to reduce the psychological, physical and behavioral effects of social isolation measures, increase individual and social welfare and enable strategies to reduce the burden caused by pandemics.
Project description
It is widely acknowledged that the pandemic, and successive restriction measures, have caused serious disruption to ordinary lives and a deterioration in public mental health. Apart from illness and death, a distinctive mark of the pandemic has been disrupted social interactions, increasing social isolation and loneliness. Mental health consequences varied widely and were significantly dependent on an individual’s unique social context. While the National COVID-19 Science Task Force proposed already in June 2020 that mitigation measures for main stress factors should be included among pandemic management plans (PMPs), in-depth research on concrete measures and on the ethical balancing between prevention of mental health problems versus prevention of virus spread remains scarce.
The aim is to explore in-depth the experiences of people affected by loneliness in order to identify types and justifications of loneliness prevention and alleviation interventions that can inform PMPs. A questionnaire study will help to confirm the perceived usefulness of loneliness alleviation measures.
Principal investigators
Prof. Dr. Bernice Elger, Institute for Biomedical Ethics, University of Basel; Unit for Health Law and Humanitarian Medicine, Center for Legal Medicine, University of Geneva
Prof. Dr. Rainer Greifeneder, Faculty of Psychology, University of Basel
Further team members
Dr. Cristina Priboi
Gemma García, PhD student
Annika Luisa Rohrmoser, PhD student
Hannah Assunta Bolt, PhD student
Contact: Prof. Bernice Elger b.elger@clutterunibas.ch
Study participants wanted!
For a research project on loneliness during the pandemic and beyond, we are looking for people who have experienced loneliness during the pandemic and would like to talk about it.
We warmly invite you to take part in our research project on loneliness in times of pandemic and beyond. The project is part of the National Research Project 80 COVID-19 in Society, which is funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation.
We are looking for:
- People between the ages of 17 and 40 who were living in Switzerland during the pandemic
- People who have felt or are feeling lonely
- We are particurlary interested in speaking to people who have been affected by mental illness.
General Conditions:
- We will conduct a 60-90 minute interview (audio recorded) either in person or online.
- The date and time can be determined by you.
- Confidentiality and data protection is assured.
- The interviews can be conducted in English, French, German or Spanish.
This scientific research will be used to further understand lonliness in Switzerland during and after the pandemic.
Registration for the interview:
You can reach us by phone, e-mail or directly via the contact form.
Tel. +41 61 207 09 62
loneliness.ibmb@clutterunibas.ch