Description

The Loneliness measure is a 6-item scale adapted from the Revised UCLA Loneliness Scale, designed to assess subjective feelings of social isolation and disconnection. Participants rate how often they experience sentiments such as having no one to talk to, feeling misunderstood or left out, and experiencing complete aloneness. Items are rated on a 4-point Likert scale from “Never” to “Always,” with an additional Don’t Know/Refuse to Answer option. This measure captures core elements of perceived emotional isolation and unmet relational needs. Scores can be used to identify individuals experiencing high levels of loneliness, monitor changes over time, and inform mental health and community support interventions.

AI/AN Communities where the measure has been used

Communities in the northern Midwestern United States and Canada

Demographics of AI/AN participants where the scale has been used

Adult caregivers with children

Notes on adaptations or modifications

  1. Reduced number of items to 6 (original scale has 20)
  2. Slight modifications in the language of some items (reversed some items – for example, “There are people I can talk to” converted to “I have nobody to talk to”)
  3. Scoring method slightly different with reduced number of items (no reverse scoring and response scale is from 0-3 as compared to 1-4 for the original measure)

Modality and administration

Self-report; this measure is administered via in-person/phone interviews or an online REDCap link is sent to the participant

Scoring

Items are rated on a 4-point Likert scale: Never, Rarely, Sometimes, and Always, with an additional option for Don’t Know/Refuse to Answer. Responses are assigned values from 0 (Never) to 3 (Always), and scores are calculated by summing the values across all items. Higher total scores indicate greater reported experiences of loneliness.

Psychometric evidence

The revised UCLA Loneliness Scale has shown high internal consistency, with a coefficient alpha of .94. Significant concurrent validity has been established, as lonely individuals reported emotions and experiences consistent with loneliness and demonstrated limited social activities and relationships. Discriminant validity has been evidenced by the differentiation of scores on the revised loneliness scale, indicating that they are not influenced by social desirability biases, correlating more highly with loneliness measures than with mood measures (Russel et al., 1980).

Citation(s)

  • Russell, D., Peplau, L. A., & Cutrona, C. E. (1980). The Revised UCLA Loneliness Scale: Concurrent and Discriminant Validity Evidence. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 39(3), 472–480. https://doi.org/10.1037//0022-3514.39.3.472
  • Walls, M., Hautala, D., Cole, A., Kosobuski, L., Weiss, N., Hill, K., & Ozhaawashkodewe’iganiikwe Williams, S. (2022). Socio-cultural integration and holistic health among Indigenous young adults. BMC Public Health, 22(1), 1002. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-13395-3