Feeling lonely? It’s not just you
Many of us remained isolated for a long time during the pandemic; even though we are more than happy to work from home or in some hybrid version of office and home, loneliness has crept into our state of being.
In fact, the mental health challenges of loneliness were already in motion prior to the pandemic. Sixty-one percent of adults were experiencing loneliness in 2019, according to the Cigna Loneliness Index. Armed with new data over the past few years, the Index now shows that adults with mental health issues are more than twice as likely to experience loneliness as those with strong mental health.
Also, people with lower incomes are lonelier than those with higher incomes. Sixty-three percent of adults earning less than $50,000 are classified as lonely and 72% of people who receive health benefits through Medicaid are classified as lonely.
Related: Worker loneliness costs businesses $154B annually
Loneliness also varies among racial groups. Seventy-five percent of Hispanic adults are lonely, as are 68% of African Americans. People older than 66 are less likely to say they feel lonely (41%) than those between the age of 18 and 24 (79%).
In a work setting, loneliness is often a barrier to productivity. Less than half of lonely employees say they are able to work efficiently (47%) or perform to the best of their abilities (48%), compared to about two-thirds of non-lonely employees who are able to perform efficiently (64%) and at their peak performance (65%). In addition, more than 42% of lonely employees said they were “mentally somewhere else” while at work in the past three months – more than double the response of non-lonely workers (18%).
So what can employers do to help employees fight these issues? Here are three suggestions:
- Help build and reinforce social connectivity at work and in the community.
- Demonstrate flexibility and offer health and wellbeing benefits that meet current and evolving needs.
- Bring to life the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion.
The report concludes by saying “While the loneliness epidemic continues, the fact that loneliness levels mostly remained static despite the pandemic can be viewed as a bright spot – but, not one that doesn’t require action.”