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Researcher Interview: Rachel Murphy

by shaunamcdonagh | Apr 15, 2024 | Loneliness research network

Interview with Rachel Murphy, PhD candidate in University College Dublin (UCD) School of Psychology

What is your area of research?

I am a PhD candidate in the School of Psychology in University College Dublin. My research focuses on developing a framework to support the implementation of peer support in integrated youth mental health services. I am supervised by Dr Amanda Fitzgerald, and my research is funded by the Irish Research Council and Jigsaw-The National Centre for Youth Mental Health.

In addition to my PhD research, I have a broader interest in loneliness in young people. I am hoping that through my research, a peer support intervention can be developed in Jigsaw that will help young people experiencing loneliness as well as mental health difficulties.

How did you become interested in this area of research?

My interest in loneliness was sparked when I learned more about the rates of loneliness in young people and the work of Professor Pamela Qualter, who led the BBC Loneliness Experiment in the UK. I was struck by the rates of loneliness in this age group and felt strongly that it was something that needs to be better understood since traditionally a lot of the research has focused on older people.

I decided to apply for a PhD to explore this topic and my research evolved into intervention development supporting young people experiencing loneliness and mental health difficulties. Intervention development and evaluation was new to me when I started the PhD, but its something I really enjoy. Through my research, I get to speak to a range of stakeholders including young people and clinicians to understand their needs and try to develop something that will be beneficial in a real-world context. I love the practical aspect of my research.

How do you see your research contributing to society, for example, what impact would you like your research to have?

Through my PhD research, I’m interested in developing an intervention that hopefully could support young people who are experiencing mental health difficulties and loneliness.

I hope that through my engagement with the LTRN, we can also raise awareness around young people experiencing loneliness and reduce the stigma around it.

What inspired you to pursue a career in research?

I like learning about new things. I like the process of identifying a problem and then trying to solve it. I like the whole aspect of writing up the research. I think I am just naturally somebody who liked learning, who liked studying. I originally thought I was going to do educational psychology, because I have some teaching experience but I think research suits me much better.

In your opinion, what are some of the most important skills needed to succeed as a researcher?

I think you need lots of different skills to succeed as a researcher. The first one would be time management; being able to work towards deadlines that you set for yourself is important. It is something that I am still learning! You also need to like to work independently but also collaborate on projects. I’m working with Jigsaw, so I collaborate with my mentor there, but collaboration also involves working with your supervisor and other PhD students. The final skill that I don’t think people think about is communication. Dissemination is a significant part of the role which includes going to conferences, going to meetings and things like that.

What would you consider to be your greatest achievement to date as a researcher or is there something you are currently working towards achieving?

Currently, I think my biggest achievement is getting on to the PhD programme and receiving funding to do my PhD. In Ireland it’s quite difficult to get funding unless you apply to an already funded PhD or else you have to go through the Irish Research Council, which can be quite competitive. I think that’s probably my biggest achievement.

Also, the fact that I am working with Jigsaw who are a Youth Mental Health organisation who do excellent work providing primary care youth mental health support. I’m really lucky to work with them and get that experience.

What is the biggest challenge or challenges that you face or have faced as a researcher?

I secured funding to do the PHD after a year, so I did the first year unfunded. That was quite tough in the beginning. Another challenge was just getting used to working independently on a large research project. As I mentioned, you need a lot of different skills in research, and it takes some time to develop these. Something I struggle with is managing my time and knowing what to prioritise. I think that’s one of the main challenges; there are so many things going on in your role as a researcher. You might be working on a paper, you might be teaching, you might be getting ready for a conference. You really have to learn to prioritise. I think that’s a challenge.

Can you give an insight into any interesting ongoing or upcoming projects that you are involved in, or will be involved in?

So, as I said, I’m working on my PhD project, but I am also working on a smaller project with funding from the Co-ordinate Transnational Access Visit programme. I will be going on a research visit to the Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute in the Hague in May 2024. For this project, I will be using the Generations and Gender dataset to conduct a longitudinal study examining predictors of loneliness in emerging adults across Europe. I’m really excited to do that because I’ll get the opportunity to collaborate with international researchers.

Is there any research that others are engaged in at present that is of interest to you?

So I really like Emma Kirwan’s research in the University of Limerick. She’s also a PhD student,
looking at loneliness in emerging adults. And she published a qualitative study recently that I thought was really interesting. I like another PhD student, Phoebe McKenna-Plumley, she’s in Queen’s University of Belfast. She did some research on existential loneliness. I think Dr Joanna McHugh Power also did something similar. I think that’s really interesting.

If you could offer advice to someone starting out a career in research, what would it be?

I suppose one piece of advice is just to try and collaborate with other people. Try and learn from other people. I know in my research career, if you want to call it that, I’ve been supported by some really amazing mentors. I was a research assistant in UL before I started my PhD in UCD. I had a supervisor there in the School of Allied Health who was really, really supportive of me and helped me to develop my skills. She was also just a really approachable mentor. Also, my supervisor now in UCD, Dr Amanda Fitzgerald, is brilliant. She gives excellent feedback and she’s good for, again, getting me thinking about my professional development and what I want to do in the future. In UCD, I’m also a member of the Youth Mental Health Lab, which is made up of students and staff. We often share ideas and collaborate on projects, and that is such a supportive network to have.

Researcher Interview: Dr Mark Ward

by shaunamcdonagh | Apr 15, 2024 | Loneliness research network

Interview with Dr Mark Ward, Senior Research Fellow at The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA)

What is your area of research?

I am Senior Research Fellow with TILDA, which is the Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing. My work focuses mostly on the social determinants of health among older adults. In the last number of years, I have been particularly interested in exploring how the social world impacts our health and well-being, with loneliness being of particular interest.

How did you become interested in this area of research?

My background is in sociology, and I have always been interested in how social structures and institutions shape outcomes for people and particularly health outcomes and essentially how the social world shapes our lives and our well-being and so on. Obviously, the social world is broad, so the things you can focus in on are equally wide ranging. But over the last number of years, through working at TILDA that we really saw how important good social relationships and friendships and social participation and the like, how essential they are for the well-being of older adults. Then of course, with the COVID-19 pandemic, interest in loneliness really came to the fore. I suppose people who possibly hadn’t thought of it before could really see how essential it is to their mental and physical health; the importance of being able to make social contacts and maintain friendships.

How do you see your research contributing to society, for example, what impact would you like your research to have?

The more ambitious side of me would hope that it helps us figure out how best to organise society and social structures so that it benefits most and not just a few. At an individual level, obviously I’d hope that my research can inform the work that community groups and people running interventions do to try and improve the lives of people at an individual level. So, there is two tiers to it, the big picture, the change society piece and the smaller, maybe improve one person’s life at a time.

What inspired you to pursue a career in research?

I have always been curious about how the world works; particularly how society is organised and how differences in that organisation impact on people’s well-being and their life chances. When I was choosing what to do in college, I initially wanted to be a social worker. I did social science in UCD and then I came to the realisation that I probably wasn’t best suited to that, but I was really interested in the big picture stuff. Over the years I developed a keen interest in research methods and particularly in understanding how we can apply statistics to understand what’s going on in the world. I had a basic curiousness to begin with and then was fortunate enough to be able to have develop and apply that curiosity in my education and research career over the last number of years.

In your opinion, what are some of the most important skills needed to succeed as a researcher?

Firstly, you have to be curious. If you’re not or you don’t have questions that you want answered well then you know you’ll find it difficult. You’ve got to be curious; you’ve got to want to actually find things out. The second is to be rigorous, and that’s where you are willing to spend the time to learn the skills and then apply those skills correctly to answer those questions that stem from your curiosity to begin with. So, curiosity coupled with rigor.

What would you consider to be your greatest achievement to date as a researcher or is there something you are currently working towards achieving?

I am very excited about a new project that I’m currently developing. My motivation for it is that levels of loneliness differ hugely between countries. In some countries you might have less than 10% reported loneliness, whereas in others it’s upwards of 30%. That got me thinking, well, what is it about those different societies that lead to those differences? I’m working at the moment to try and get research off the ground that will allow me to compare structural factors or contextual level factors in different countries to try and see if they explain some of those differences. When we talk about contextual factors, I’m talking about cultural norms; things like how important family is to people or how important is having a lot of friends to people. Also, demographic and socio-economic factors such as inequality, poverty, gender, employment, and caring roles. Then there are also differences in welfare regimes and how societies are shaped from a governmental or policy level.

In terms of my own achievements, I’m very proud of a lot the public facing research that we’ve done, including some work we’ve done with ALONE in the past where we’ve gotten the message out about how important an issue for health that loneliness is for older adults. This was particularly telling or noteworthy around the COVID-19 pandemic when everybody could see just how essential our social lives are having to a large degree taking them pretty much for granted before. You don’t know what you have until its gone.

What is the biggest challenge or challenges that you face or have faced as a researcher?
To get into the weeds of it, the data infrastructure in Ireland really lags behind that of other countries. What I mean by that is we’re really constrained in the types of data that we can link together or combine together. If I want to combine TILDA survey data to data collected from other sources, for example, healthcare data, or employment data, it’s next to impossible. Whereas in other countries, you can combine all these things together, which gives you a really full picture of people’s lives in terms of their healthcare use, employment, social factors and so on. One of the biggest challenges has been the data infrastructure constraints in Ireland.

Can you give an insight into any interesting ongoing or upcoming projects that you are involved in, or will be involved in?

The one that I’m really excited about is looking at the different kind of institutional or structural differences. I also led out on our programme of research on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on people’s health and well-being. We continue to use that data to try and figure out who has recovered best and least from the pandemic. For example, what we’ve found is in terms of loneliness, that while loneliness peaked during the pandemic and it has kind of returned towards pre pandemic levels, but it’s still not back to where it was. Related to that, we know from working with the likes of yourselves in ALONE and Men’s Sheds and other organisations on the ground, that a lot of people haven’t returned to the good habits that they had before the pandemic, particularly men. People seem to have broken the good habits that they had in terms of being part of organisations within the community and a lot of people have not gone back. We are trying to figure out exactly who those people are and maybe ways that could get them back to the better places they were in pre pandemic.

Is there any research that others are engaged in at present that is of interest to you?

One of the things I’m really glad to see over the last couple of years has been the realisation that loneliness isn’t just an issue for older adults. A lot of the narrative, both within research and more so in public discourse, is this notion of the lonely, isolated older adults living in a rural area on their own. The reality is that all age groups experience loneliness, and if anything, loneliness can be more strongly felt by younger people The research highlighting the fact that loneliness occurs over the life course, and it doesn’t just appear in old age is really important. It has motivated some really good research that looks at the life course of loneliness rather than just at one point in time. This is related to lots of research for older adults in that a lot of what we call risk factors or modifiable things happened much earlier in life. We don’t simply start at age 50 or age 60. We need to understand the kind of things in earlier life, even childhood, through to early adulthood, middle adulthood, how these all bring us to the situation that we’re in older adulthood. Equally, many of the changes that we advocate for older adults, for example, safe places to walk, accessible services, and so on, benefit everyone, young and old.

If you could offer one piece of advice to someone starting out a career in research, what would it be?

Ask questions. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. In terms of just your own curiosity and having questions that you want answered at that level. But also, just on a day-to-day, keep asking questions, to colleagues etc. Also read everything but question everything you do.

Loneliness in Young People

by shaunamcdonagh | Apr 9, 2024 | Loneliness research network, young people

A brief look at the experience of loneliness as a young person

Loneliness has recently been declared by the US Surgeon General as a new public health epidemic. What’s more, research in Europe has shown 35% of the population report feeling lonely on a regular basis, while 13% feel lonely most or all the time. Unfortunately, this research also revealed Ireland has the highest rates of loneliness in the EU, with 20% of people reporting that they are lonely most of the time[1].

What is loneliness?

Loneliness is experienced as a feeling of disconnection from others, often resulting from fewer desirable relationships or social interactions. It is a subjective unpleasant feeling and complex emotional state of mind. As a young person, I believe that loneliness is a universal feeling. In my opinion, loneliness isn’t limited to older adults; it can affect individuals of all ages, including the younger generation. When I first moved away from home to study, I noticed more frequent feelings of loneliness being away from home and missing family and friends. This experience is not unique to me, as attested to in a recent exploratory study with a sample of 6,708 participants whereby 71% reported they had experienced loneliness at some previous stage in their life, with 39% as a young adult (16–24 years)[2].

Does loneliness affect young people?

I’ve realised that despite popular opinion, loneliness is not always associated with being alone. It is possible to feel lonely even while surrounded by others and it is also possible to spend a lot of time alone without experiencing a sense of loneliness. It’s ironic that loneliness is affecting my generation, considering developments in technology and digital communication. Yet, with our heavy reliance on screens, coupled with various life transitions and the pressure to perform and fit in, it’s clear that feelings of loneliness can easily emerge.

As young people, we experience a significant amount of life changes and transitions. Events such as leaving home and moving away from family, old friends and support systems, beginning a new job, or attending a third-level college, can all result in us feeling lonely. It is an important developmental stage where we are gradually becoming more independent from our parents and striving to build strong relationships with our peers, all the while developing important emotional and social skills. The numerous demands and expectations that are placed on us such as academic stress, societal pressures and financial and employment concerns all intensify feelings of loneliness.

It comes as no surprise that in the BBC Loneliness experiment which involved 55,000 participants, levels of loneliness were highest in younger respondents with 40% feeling lonely[3]. As young people, we can often feel lonely and disengaged in a society that promotes an unachievable ideal and prioritises achievement and productivity.

There is really interesting research currently underway, which is being conducted by Prof Jennifer Lau in of Queen Mary University London, in collaboration with other researchers. The goal of this project is to develop a new loneliness assessment questionnaire that is specially designed for use by young people – the Youth Loneliness Scale (YLS)[4]. Initial findings from workshops and focus groups provide insights into what loneliness means to young people and adolescents. Common descriptors of loneliness included feelings of isolation and being unsupported by others, resulting in negative emotions like anger, boredom and dejection. Young people in this project have spoken about the importance of feeling respected, included, and understood by friends and that feeling excluded or uninvolved in conversations or plans resulted in loneliness. Moreover, they explained how they associated loneliness with feelings of self-consciousness, negative and anxious thinking patterns, and expressed that they feared others perceiving them as being lonely.

There is a stigma encircling loneliness for my generation, we don’t want to acknowledge or speak about the feeling of being lonely because that could translate to us being seen as weak or vulnerable. There is a crucial need for this stigma to be broken down through encouraging open communication.

What is affecting loneliness among young people?

The COVID-19 pandemic had a huge impact on young people in terms of limiting and reducing our social interactions in an effort to control and regulate the spread of the virus. While it needs to be acknowledged that the distancing measures put in place were necessary for public health and individuals’ safety, they resulted in an increased level of loneliness.

Statistics from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show that loneliness levels have nearly doubled in less than a year increasing from 6.8% in April 2020 to 13.1% in February 2021. Moreover, a British study about COVID-19 and loneliness revealed 16 to 24 year olds were more likely to have experienced lockdown loneliness (50.8%), compared to those aged 55 to 69 years who were less likely to (24.1%)[5].

Personally, I believe that the lockdowns restricted our efforts to grow, develop, and transition from adolescents to adulthood. Forging new friendships and strengthening and maintaining existing relationships became exceedingly difficult to achieve under such circumstances resulting in pronounced feelings of loneliness.

Without doubt, I believe that social media use is inextricably linked with loneliness, and it cannot go unspoken when discussing this topic. In recent years, the way in which we connect and communicate with one another has completely transformed by modern technology and social media. Irrespective of our location, staying in touch with family and friends has never been easier and can be done in a matter of seconds. There are a multitude of communication options available to us such as Snapchat, WhatsApp, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Skype and Facetime, to name but a few. It is evident that we are availing of these services, as the My World Survey 2 (MWS-2)[6] reports that 96% of adolescents have a social media profile.

But despite all this connectivity, levels of loneliness are rising. While as young people we may feel more comfortable expressing ourselves through screens, online relationships are simply less fulfilling than in person interactions. The intimacy and depth of face-to-face connections can never be replaced by the superficial nature of online exchanges. I feel like there’s no replacement for face-to-face communication. Its associated attributes such as body language and tonality, allows for a much higher level of human contact and connectiveness. I also think that social media lends itself to social comparison. Its curative nature can lead to feelings of inadequacy whereby we begin comparing ourselves to the false images that are presented online, intensifying feelings of loneliness. A reported 34% of young people spend more than three hours online per day and 29% spend 2-3 hours online a day according to the MWS-2. This high dependence on technology may be contributing to our loneliness as technology alone does not replace the value of interpersonal communication and human engagement.

Prolonged experiences of loneliness has an extremely harmful and damaging effect on us as young people in terms of our overall mental health and wellbeing. One study carried out in 2021 by Hemberg and colleagues linked loneliness with negative attributes such as fear, anxiety and emptiness among young people[7] while other studies, such as one carried out by Zysberg in 2012, highlighted its associated adverse psychological conditions, namely, depression, social deviance, lower social skills and substance abuse[8].

When discussing loneliness, I think it is important to note the key role of the Loneliness Taskforce (LT), a coalition of organisations and individuals working to address loneliness. The goal of the LT is to raise awareness of loneliness and campaign for more action to address this issue. To help tackle loneliness, the LT have made various recommendations and one that I think is really beneficial is to become more involved in our local communities. They suggest volunteering to increase both our interpersonal skills and self-confidence and also recommend we get involved in local initiatives such as Foróige, Tidy Towns and the GAA.

Seeking help from others and having open and honest discussions and conversations also can help in reducing the stigma that is surrounding loneliness. Furthermore, we can engage in activities such as practising self-care and connecting in person with friends and family.

Given loneliness is such a prevalent issue, I think mental health studies should include more findings and up to date statistics in relation to loneliness as a means of raising awareness. These actions can help we as young people to feel valued while also promoting a sense of openness and interconnection within society.

Shauna McDonagh

Research Assistant

Shauna is a third year BSc Psychology student in Maynooth University. She was a Research Intern with ALONE during her third-year placement and is currently working as a Research Assistant with ALONE. Her research interests are in the areas of health, clinical and developmental psychology.

Shauna previously completed a Research Internship with Maynooth University. Her work included research in the area of rehabilitation, disability and health psychology with various roles such as data collection, abstract screening and policy analysis.