Digital Commons @ SPU

Exploring loneliness in committed relationships: what role does quality of relationship play?

Loneliness is an aspect of the human experience that has garnered increasing attention as links between loneliness and negative health outcomes have been discovered across medical and mental health fields. Research on loneliness has highlighted relationship status as a prominent influencing factor on individual’s experiences of loneliness, underscoring findings that those in more committed relationships may experience less loneliness. This has clinical implications for therapists, particularly those working with couples who might assume that individuals in committed relationships are unlikely to experience loneliness because of their committed relationship status. This study focuses on the experience of loneliness in committed relationships and aims to examine quality of relationship as an influential factor on the link between relationship status and loneliness.