Loneliness is Contagious
A new study, conducted by researchers at the University of Chicago, the University of California, San Diego and Harvard University and published in the December issue of The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, shows that loneliness is contagious. Loneliness, defined as simply being sad as a result of feeling alone, is apparently contagious within social networks.
The study followed 5000 residents of Framingham, Massachusetts who were part of the Framingham Heart study between 1991 and 2001. Participants periodically filled out questionnaires that monitored their medical history and physical health, but that also measured their depression and loneliness.
Cinergy Health reminds the reader that loneliness is hard to recognize. The researchers actually found that the origin of the lonely feelings and contagion were as much biochemical as they were emotional.
