Can science find ways to ease loneliness?

Related podcast The science of loneliness, making one of organic chemistry’s oldest reactions safer, and a new book series BY Sarah Crespi , Kelly Servick , Ariana Remmel , Valerie Thompson , Angela Saini Podcast 25 Apr 2024 One Wednesday in May 2023, a small group gathered at an outdoor café in Barcelona, Spain, sipping coffee in the late morning sunshine and talking about their lives. They reflected on how to use their time and the struggle to find meaning. Although their interactions may have seemed unremarkable to anyone passing by, the group’s meeting was part of a carefully designed experiment, aimed at alleviating a painful experience: loneliness. Groups in the study usually consist of eight to 12 people who have reported feeling lonely in a survey and signed up to help test whether building social support though a series of group activities in urban green spaces might help. On that day, just two participants could join, along with two trained facilitators, there to offer support as the volunteers planned their outings and got to know each other. Laura Coll-Planas, a medical doctor and public health researcher at the University of Vic - Central University of Catalonia wa...
Source: Science of Aging Knowledge Environment - Category: Geriatrics Source Type: research