Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1114117
4 NEWS maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 8 MAY 2019 YANNICK PACE ROUGHLY a third of the Mal- tese population suffers from some degree of loneliness, the results of the first national study on the subject have shown. 42% of those aged between 35 and 54 said they were moder- ately lonely, with the propor- tion increasing to 55.3% among those aged 55 and over, with re- sults showing, as expected, that loneliness becomes more prev- elant as people get older. The study was carried out by the Faculty for Social Well-be- ing, together with the National Statistics Office, and found that of the 1,000 people surveyed, 43.5% said they were either moderately (41.3%), severely (1.7%) or very severely lonely (0.7%). A third of respondents said they felt some degree of empti- ness. 15.2% said they felt a gen- eral sense of emptiness, while 17.9% felt that this was 'more or less' the case. One in five said they had no friends to call when in need. Andrew Azzo- pardi, the faculty's dean, described the results as worrying, and as presenting clear signs of loneli- ness increasing within Maltese society. The research was carried out among people aged 11 and over, from all across Malta and Gozo and gauged both social loneliness – the absence of so- cial contact – and emotional loneliness, where one might feel alone despite having a so- cial network to interact with. The vast majority of the re- spondents, 96.7% were born in Malta, with 41.8% have at- tained at least a post-secondary level of education. 94.2% of respondents said they did not live alone, with a majority say- ing they lived with other family members. 59.8% said they lived with a spouse or partner. A majority of those who took part in the survey said they felt a moderately to very strong feeling of belonging in their own neighbourhood, with 21.1% saying they felt a 'slightly strong' feeling and 11.9% saying they did not feel they belonged. 89.2% said they felt positive about their life while some 20% said they did not feel that their income was enough for them to live. The first national study on loneliness has found that over two-thirds of people are experiencing some degree of loneliness Lonely? You're not alone Malta study finds over-35s becoming increasingly 'moderately lonely' Distribution of persons aged 11+ by loneliness score categories and sex Total Loneliness Score Not lonely Moderately lonely Severely lonely Very severely lonely 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 58% 55% 39.9% 42.8% 1.9% 1.4% 0.2% 0.7% Male Female Distributed by age Not lonely Moderately lonely Severely lonely Very severely lonely 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 65.8% 33.3% 74.9% 24.7% 54.6% 42.0% 42% 55.4% 11-19 20-34 35-54 55+ Questions asked to people about their state of loneliness There is always someone I can talk to about my day-to-day problems I miss having a really close friend I experience a general sense of emptiness There are plenty of people I can lean on when I have problems I miss the pleasure of the company of others I nd my circle of friends and acquaintances too limited There are many people I can trust completely There are enough people I feel close to I miss having people around me I often feel rejected I can call on my friends whenever I need them 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% 83.3 13.4 6.3 90.3 18.4 18.8 62.8 67.5 13.6 18.9 29.0 16.5 54.5 9.0 12.6 78.4 49.0 20.2 30.8 75.8 15.8 8.4 26.6 15.5 57.9 91.1 57.4 17.7 24.9