A study that looked into loneliness levels before and after the pandemic showed that people in Malta are feeling more emotionally isolated than socially disconnected.
This suggests that while people might have socialised with others, even if online, their emotional needs were not always met.
The study compared data collected in 2019 – before the March 2020 pandemic hit Malta – to data collected in July 2022, three months after most restrictive measures were lifted as the pandemic phased out.
Results showed an increase in emotional loneliness, but a decrease in social loneliness.
“This rise [in emotional loneliness] signals there are internal struggles we are not yet ready to confront, while at the same time, we find it increasingly difficult to express them outwardly,” said Andrew Azzopardi, professor and former dean of the University of Malta’s Faculty for Social Well-being.
“Solidarity and togetherness, once strong pillars of our culture, should remain central to our way of life. However, we must be careful not to lose sight of the deeper, unspoken struggles individuals are facing – struggles that we either fail to recognise or choose not to engage with.”
Azzopardi was also one of the researchers of the study – titled ‘Loneliness in the Maltese population: A comparison of data from 2019 and 2022’ – together with Marilyn Clark, Anna Grech and Liberato Camilleri.
The study was recently published in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships. It involved 658 telephone interviews, with people aged 11 and over, in July 2022.
Results showed an increase in overall loneliness: in 2019, 41.3% of respondents were classified as moderately lonely, with 2.1% of participants classified as severely or very severely lonely. In 2022, the rate of loneliness rose to 54.6% with 5.2% reporting severe or very severe loneliness.
Loneliness was also more prevalent among people with lower income and education levels, people with poor health and those who had a low sense of neighbourhood belonging
The study also looked at mean emotional loneliness scores (on a scale from 0-6) and mean social loneliness scores (on a scale from 0-5).
Results showed that, while people felt slightly less socially lonely in 2022 compared to 2019 (1.23 score in 2019, 1.16 score in 2022), the mean emotional loneliness increased (1.42 in 2019, 2.1 in 2022).
Azzopardi said the study, which will be followed up by another one this year, aimed to shed light on loneliness to identify areas that urgently need attention within our social policy.
Data showed groups of people experiencing more loneliness and these included young people under 19, older people over 55 and widowed or retired people.
Loneliness was also more prevalent among people with lower income and education levels, people with poor health and those who had a low sense of neighbourhood belonging.
The study went on to list some policy recommendations that included increasing initiatives to address affordable housing and cost of living, investing in stronger communities and social infrastructure such as community centres, parks, and public spaces, and investing in social inclusion programmes.
In January last year, the Faculty for Social Wellbeing issued 100 recommendations to combat loneliness.
These included embarking on a campaign to bring back basic etiquette, such as standing up for someone on the bus, helping an elderly person cross the road or simply saying 'good morning'.
Other recommendations included having a parliamentary secretary focused on loneliness and setting up a loneliness task force – made up of politicians, experts, service providers, academics and policymakers – to look into the impact of loneliness on society and draw up solutions.