Study of the Relationship Between Loneliness and Suicidal Risks among the Adolescents and the Elderly

Tulitbaeva Galina Fanilevna ORCID: 0000-0002-3754-9473 PhD in Psychology Associate Professor, Department of Psychological Support and Clinical Psychology, Ufa University of Science and Technology 3/4 Karl Marx str., Ufa, Republic of Bashkortostan, 450000, Russia tulitbaevagf@rambler.ru Other publications by this author

Khaidarshina Regina Nagimovna Master's student, Faculty of Psychology, Ufa University of Science and Technology 450000, Russia, Republic 450000, Russian Federation, Republic of Bashkortostan, Ufa, Mendeleev str., 177/5 haidarshina777@mail.ru

The problem of suicide in Russia has remained relevant for several decades. This cause of death of people not only occupies a high place in the overall mortality structure of the population (being in third place among the causes of death), but also causes huge damage to people, both moral and material.

According to statistics, every day around the world about three thousand people voluntarily end their lives, about a million people die by their own decision in a year, which is 1.5 percent of all human deaths ^[8]. However, the scale of the stated problem is much wider, because the number of suicidal attempts is significantly higher than the number of completed suicides.

The level of suicide risk is especially high in the groups of adolescents and the elderly, it is these categories of people who are most vulnerable in the face of this danger. One of the most important causes of suicide in these age groups is a feeling of loneliness.

Today, the problem of experiencing loneliness is becoming global and acute, separate areas of research are devoted to it, legitimately linking it with the deterioration of mental health and the violation of social ties. The peculiarity of this phenomenon is, in our opinion, its ambivalence, because the idea of loneliness as a negative phenomenon both at the household level and in many scientific approaches overshadows the true nature of loneliness and closes the opportunity to learn how to cope with it by seeing its reverse side. If loneliness is perceived as a deficit (communication, experiences, connections) and receives an assessment of an undesirable state, then the possibility of creative solitude is thus closed, since there is no mental strength left for it, a person's desire to avoid loneliness has the consequence of avoiding solitude in general.

At the same time, most researchers emphasize three main directions of the phenomenon of loneliness: firstly, the experience of loneliness as a response to social isolation, secondly, the experience of loneliness as a response to the loss of a significant person (or relationship), thirdly, the experience of loneliness as the main element of self-development ^{[2, 3, 4, 5]}.

In an attempt to prove his own independence, value, uniqueness and originality of his personality, a young man inevitably finds himself in a situation of loneliness, having a conversation with himself (which, by the way, helps him survive this isolation). According to I.S. Kohn, and it is difficult to disagree with him in this, it is loneliness that is an invaluable assistant to a teenager in the opportunity to play a variety of roles that are inaccessible to him in real life, in the opportunity to simulate and live different situations, including also difficult and critical ones ^[4]. However, loneliness, on the one hand, is a necessary condition for the development of a teenager's personality, on the other hand, it creates difficulties and barriers in the development of the communicative side of life and contributes to the formation of a negative self–image ^{[1, 7]}.

An essential aspect of loneliness in older people is not isolation as such, but psychological and emotional features of perception and awareness of loneliness either as inevitable conditions of existence and their use as a resource, or as indifference from others and experiencing it as a tragedy and misfortune ^[3].

The ambiguous nature of the phenomenon of loneliness and the existing connection between the experience of loneliness and the risk of suicide, especially high in the age groups we study, necessitated our research aimed at a more detailed study of this relationship.

The aim of the study is to identify links between loneliness and suicidal risk in adolescents and the elderly.

The subject of the study is the relationship between loneliness and suicidal risk in adolescents and the elderly.

The hypothesis of the study was to establish the specifics of the relationship between loneliness and suicidal risk in groups of adolescents and the elderly.

The novelty of the study lies in the fact that for the first time a system of interrelations between loneliness and suicidal tendencies in adolescence and old age has been identified and the nature of these connections has been analyzed. In the course of the study, the relationship between the experience of loneliness as a negative or positive phenomenon and the level of suicidal risk was established in both study groups. At the same time, a negative attitude towards one's loneliness and dependence on communication are associated with a high level of suicidal risk, and a positive attitude towards loneliness and a low degree of experiencing actual loneliness are associated with a low risk of suicide. I.e., it is the interpretation of one's loneliness by the subject as a misfortune or resource that causes a correspondingly high or low level of suicide risk.

The following methods were used in the work: "Differential questionnaire of loneliness experience" (E.N. Osin, D.A. Leontiev), a method for diagnosing the level of subjective feeling of loneliness (D. Russell, M. Ferguson), "Suicide risk map" in modification for adolescents (L.B. Schneider), as well as "Suicide risk assessment scale" (V. Patterson) and the "Scale of hopelessness" (A. Beck).

The study was conducted in 2020-2022 on the basis of the social and psychological assistance service of the Karaidelsky district of the Republic of Bashkortostan, it was attended by teenagers aged 15-16 years and elderly people over the age of 65, a total of 90 people.

The obtained average values and a comparative analysis of these values using the U-Mann-Whitney criterion are presented in Table 1.

Table 1 – Comparative analysis of the average group indicators of loneliness and suicide risk in adolescents and the elderly

The variable showing the degree of actual feeling of loneliness, lack of close communication with other people, is the general experience of loneliness, has high arithmetic averages in both groups (in the group of adolescents – 27.5 points; in the group of elderly people – 22.4 points), which shows the severity of the experience of isolation, lack of emotional intimacy or contact with people.

The variable reflecting the rejection of loneliness, the inability to stay alone, dependence on communication, has a high arithmetic mean in the group of adolescents (23.7), and the average in the group of older people (16.8). High scores on this scale indicate a negative attitude towards loneliness, the desire to seek communication at any cost, just to avoid solitude – this characterizes the group of teenagers in our sample. Older people are more tolerant of loneliness and do not seek to avoid solitude.

The variable reflecting the ability to find a resource in solitude, to use solitude creatively for one's own development, is positive loneliness, has a low arithmetic mean in the group of adolescents (14.6), and a high one in the group of elderly people (20.9). Low scores on this scale indicate the inability of adolescents to find a resource alone and the lack of positive emotions in connection with solitude. High scores characterize older people as being able to find a resource in a situation of solitude, appreciate it, and use it for their own good.

The variable showing one's own attitude to one's loneliness is the level of subjective feeling of loneliness, which, according to the arithmetic mean, is characterized as average in both groups (38.7 in the group of adolescents, 25.2 in the group of elderly people), which indicates that respondents assess their loneliness as not high, but not low.

The variable showing the severity of suicide risk factors, the level of suicide risk (according to the "Suicide Risk Map" method), has an arithmetic mean of the average level for a group of adolescents (13.9), which indicates the presence of suicide risk, and a low level for a group of elderly people (8.1), which indicates a low risk of suicide.

The variable showing the severity of suicide risk factors, the level of suicide risk (according to the Suicide Risk Assessment Scale), has arithmetic averages at an average level in both groups (4.1 in the group of adolescents and 2.7 in the group of elderly people), which indicates the presence of suicide risk.

The variable showing the severity of a negative attitude towards one's own supposed future, the level of negative attitude towards one's own supposed future, has arithmetic averages at an average level in both groups (12.4 in the group of adolescents and 8.6 in the group of elderly people), which indicates a moderate degree of hopelessness.

So, a comparative analysis of the data obtained on indicators of loneliness and suicidal risk in the two studied groups (adolescents and the elderly) allows us to talk about reliable statistical differences in the samples for the following variables: about the experience of loneliness, dependence on communication, positive loneliness, subjective feeling of loneliness, suicidal risk, negative attitude to one's own supposed future. The established significant differences in the samples allow us to analyze the relationship between indicators of loneliness and suicidal risk in order to identify the specifics of the relationship between the variables separately for two groups of subjects.

Mathematical analysis and identification of the relationship between the studied variables were carried out using Spearman's rank correlation coefficient rs.

Among the selected indicators of loneliness and suicidal risk in adolescents, 12 pairs of significant correlations were identified, including 9 positive and 3 negative (Table 2).

Table 2 – Established correlations of indicators of loneliness and suicidal risk in the group of adolescents

The study found the following connections.

The general experience of loneliness and the level of suicidal risk (according to the "Suicide risk Map" method) (rs = 0.468 at p?0.01). This result indicates that in adolescents, a high level of general loneliness corresponds to a high level of suicidal risk, and, conversely, with a low level of general loneliness, the risk of suicide is characterized as insignificant. If a teenager is isolated, considers himself lonely and experiences it painfully, this increases the risk of suicide. And if a teenager does not have a painful experience of his loneliness, then the risk of suicide is low.

The overall experience of loneliness and the level of suicidal risk (according to the suicide risk assessment scale) (rs = 0.354 at p?0.05). This indicates that in adolescents, a high level of general loneliness corresponds to a high level of suicidal risk, i.e., the stronger the general experience of loneliness, the higher the level of suicidal risk, and a lower degree of actual loneliness corresponds to a less significant risk of suicide.

The general experience of loneliness and the level of negative attitude towards one's own supposed future (rs = 0.558 at p?0.01). This indicates that in adolescents, a high level of general loneliness corresponds to a high level of negative attitude towards their future, and a low level corresponds to a low one. I.e., in the case of isolation and painful experience of their loneliness, the teenager evaluates his expected future negatively (believes that everything will go wrong in his life, he will not achieve his goals, problems will not be solved). And in the absence of a painful experience of loneliness, there is a low level of hopelessness.

Dependence on communication and the level of suicidal risk (according to the "Suicide Risk Map" method) (rs = 0.404 at p?0.01). This result suggests that the higher the level of dependence on communication, the greater the risk of suicide, and vice versa, the lower it is, the lower the level of suicidal risk. I.e., the more strongly a teenager does not accept the situation of loneliness and more intensively seeks contacts at any cost, the higher his level of suicidal risk, and the calmer his the attitude towards loneliness, the lower the level of suicidal risk is noted.

Dependence on communication and the level of suicidal risk (according to the suicide risk assessment scale) (rs = 0.479 at p?0.01). This relationship indicates that the higher the level of dependence on communication, the greater the risk of suicide, and vice versa, the lower it is, the lower the level of suicidal risk. I.e., the more strongly a teenager does not accept the situation of loneliness and more intensively seeks contacts at any cost, the higher his level of suicidal risk is observed, and the more the more tolerant his attitude towards loneliness is, the lower the level of suicidal risk he has.

Dependence on communication and the level of negative attitude towards one's own supposed future (rs = 0.489 at p?0.01). This result suggests that the higher the level of dependence on communication, the higher the rates of hopelessness are observed in a teenager. I.e., a teenager who negatively perceives loneliness and seeks contacts at all costs in order to avoid solitude, there is also a negative assessment of his intended future, such a teenager believes that everything will be in his life go wrong, he will not achieve his goals, problems will not be solved. A teenager who is tolerant of loneliness has lower rates of hopelessness.

Positive loneliness and the level of suicidal risk (according to the "Suicide Risk Map" method) (rs = -0.502 at p?0.01). This indicates that the higher the indicators on the "positive loneliness" scale, the lower the level of suicidal risk, and the lower these indicators, the greater the risk of suicide. I.e., adolescents who experience positive emotions in situations of solitude, are able to appreciate them and strive to consciously devote time to themselves in solitude, the level of The suicide risk will be lower, and adolescents who are unable to find a resource and do not experience positive emotions in a situation of solitude have a high level of suicide risk.

Positive loneliness and the level of suicidal risk (according to the suicide risk assessment scale) (rs = -0.485 at p?0.01). This result confirms the previous conclusion that adolescents who are able to appreciate situations of solitude and experience positive emotions in relation to them will have a lower level of suicidal risk, and adolescents who are unable to find a resource in a situation of solitude and do not experience positive emotions have a high level of suicidal risk.

Positive loneliness and the level of negative attitude towards one's own supposed future (rs = -0.374 at p?0.05). This result indicates that the higher the indicators on the scale of "positive loneliness" in adolescents, the lower the level of negative attitude towards their future. That is, adolescents who know how to appreciate situations of solitude and experience positive emotions in their attitude demonstrate a low level of hopelessness, and adolescents who are unable to find solitude in a situation the resource does not experience positive emotions, they believe that everything will go wrong in life, problems will not be solved, goals will not be achieved.

The level of subjective feeling of loneliness and the level of suicidal risk (according to the "Suicide risk Map" method) (rs = 0.341 at p?0.05). This relationship indicates that the more strongly a teenager feels his loneliness, the higher his level of suicidal risk will be, and adolescents with a low degree of loneliness experience a low level of suicidal risk.

The level of subjective feeling of loneliness and the level of suicidal risk (according to the suicide risk assessment scale) (rs = 0.354 at p?0.05). This result suggests that adolescents who experience severe loneliness have a high level of suicidal risk. Adolescents who do not experience severe loneliness have a lower risk of suicide.

The level of subjective feeling of loneliness and the level of negative attitude towards one's own supposed future (rs = 0.430 at p?0.01). This result suggests that teenagers who experience intense loneliness are characterized by a high degree of hopelessness. Teenagers who do not experience severe loneliness have a lower degree of hopelessness.

Thus, the conducted correlation analysis of loneliness and suicidal risk in the group of adolescents allows us to note the following interrelations between the general experience of loneliness and suicidal risk, negative attitude to one's own assumed future; dependence on communication and suicidal risk, negative attitude to one's own assumed future; positive loneliness and suicidal risk, negative attitude to one's own assumed future.

The strongest correlation between indicators of loneliness and suicidal risk in the group of adolescents was found between the variables general experience of loneliness and negative attitude to their own supposed future, which indicates that adolescents in the case of isolation and painful experience of their loneliness assess their expected future negatively.

Among the selected indicators of loneliness and suicidal risk in the elderly, 12 pairs of significant correlations were identified, including 9 positive and 3 negative (Table 3).

Table 3 – Established correlations of indicators of loneliness and suicide risk in the elderly group

During the study, the following connections were found.

The general experience of loneliness and the level of suicidal risk (according to the "Suicide risk Map" method) (rs = 0.422 at p?0.01). This result indicates that if an elderly person is isolated, considers himself lonely and experiences it painfully, this increases the risk of suicide. And if he does not have a painful experience of his loneliness, then the risk of suicide is low.

The overall experience of loneliness and the level of suicidal risk (according to the suicide risk assessment scale) (rs = 0.556 at p?0.01). This indicates that in older people, the stronger the overall experience of loneliness, the higher the level of suicidal risk, and a lower degree of actual loneliness corresponds to a less significant risk of suicide.

The general experience of loneliness and the level of negative attitude towards one's own supposed future (rs = 0.506 at p?0.01). This indicates that in the case of isolation and painful experience of his loneliness, an elderly person negatively evaluates his expected future (he believes that everything will go wrong in his life, he will not achieve his goals, problems will not be solved). And in the absence of a painful experience of loneliness, there is a low level of hopelessness.

Dependence on communication and the level of suicidal risk (according to the "Suicide Risk Map" method) (rs = 0.430 at p?0.01). This result suggests that the more an elderly person does not accept the situation of loneliness and more intensively seeks contacts at any cost, the higher his level of suicidal risk, and the calmer his attitude towards loneliness, the lower his level of suicidal risk is noted.

Dependence on communication and the level of suicidal risk (according to the suicide risk assessment scale) (rs = 0.358 at p?0.5). This connection indicates that the more strongly an elderly person does not accept the situation of loneliness and more intensively seeks contacts at any cost, the higher his level of suicidal risk is observed, and the more tolerant his attitude towards loneliness, the lower the level of suicidal risk he has.

Dependence on communication and the level of negative attitude towards one's own supposed future (rs = 0.398 at p?0.05). This result suggests that an elderly person who negatively perceives loneliness and strives for contacts at any cost in order to avoid solitude also has a negative assessment of his supposed future, he believes that everything will go wrong in his life, he will not achieve his goals, problems will not be resolved. An elderly person who is tolerant of loneliness has lower rates of hopelessness.

Positive loneliness and the level of suicidal risk (according to the "Suicide Risk Map" method) (rs = -0.371 at p?0.05). This indicates that older people who experience positive emotions in situations of solitude, are able to appreciate them and strive to consciously devote time to themselves in solitude, the level of suicidal risk will be lower.

Positive loneliness and the level of suicidal risk (according to the suicide risk assessment scale) (rs = -0.394 at p<0.05). This result confirms the previous conclusion that older people who know how to appreciate privacy situations and experience positive emotions about them will have a lower level of suicide risk.

Positive loneliness and the level of negative attitude towards one's own supposed future (rs = -0.331 at p?0.05). This result indicates that older people who are able to appreciate privacy situations and experience positive emotions about them show a lower level of hopelessness.

The level of subjective feeling of loneliness and the level of suicidal risk (according to the "Suicide risk Map" method) (rs = 0.585 at p?0.01). This relationship indicates that the more an elderly person feels lonely, the higher their suicide risk level will be.

The level of subjective feeling of loneliness and the level of suicidal risk (according to the suicide risk assessment scale) (rs = 0.539 at p?0.01). This result suggests that older people who experience severe loneliness have a high level of suicidal risk. Older people who do not experience severe loneliness have a lower risk of suicide.

The level of subjective feeling of loneliness and the level of negative attitude towards one's own supposed future (rs = 0.452 at p?0.01). This result suggests that older people who experience intense loneliness are characterized by a high degree of hopelessness. Older people who do not experience severe loneliness have a lower degree of hopelessness.

Thus, in the group of elderly people, the following relationships were revealed: the general experience of loneliness and the level of suicidal risk, the general experience of loneliness and the level of negative attitude towards one's own assumed future, dependence on communication and the level of suicidal risk, dependence on communication and the level of negative attitude towards one's own assumed future, positive loneliness and the level of suicidal risk, positive loneliness and the level of negative attitude towards one's own supposed future, the level of subjective feeling of loneliness and the level of suicidal risk, the level of subjective feeling of loneliness and the level of negative attitude towards one's own supposed future. The most pronounced relationship is between variables of subjective feeling of loneliness and suicidal risk, which shows the high importance of feeling one's own loneliness in the risks of suicidal behavior in older people and expresses the relevance of the problem being developed. 

Conclusion.

The established connection between a negative attitude towards one's own loneliness, experiencing it as one's misfortune, and a high level of suicidal risk, as well as an attitude towards one's own loneliness as a resource, rather than as a misfortune and problem, and accordingly a low level of suicidal risk shows that there is a way to overcome the negative aspects of loneliness and reduce the number of suicides as completed, so are parasuicides. And this path is associated with a change in attitudes towards loneliness, the ability to self-regulate, the ability to find and use internal and external resources of the individual, i.e. with psychological literacy of people. The solution of this problem can be facilitated by the creation of special anti-crisis programs dedicated to overcoming the negative aspect of loneliness.

Mainly, overcoming the negative aspects of loneliness is based on the recognition of the existence of loneliness (including by adolescents and the elderly themselves), as well as on the acceptance and, if necessary, transformation of its psychological content. After all, the most important component of a person's loneliness is not the ways in which he reached it, but how the person himself perceives and uses this state of his ^[6].

The results obtained will be useful both to specialists engaged in psychological assistance to the population, as well as to teachers, social workers and other specialists working with adolescents and the elderly. Prospects for further research are seen in the development of a program of socio-psychological support for adolescents and the elderly in overcoming loneliness.