Loneliness: What Research Says and What Helps

Last updated November 4, 2026 · 7 minute read

Loneliness is the painful feeling that your connections are fewer or less close than you want, and it is not the same as being alone. It is common, and research links it with poorer health, but most of that research cannot show that loneliness is the cause. Recent reviews of programs find small to moderate benefits, and talking therapies that address unhelpful thinking look most promising. Small, repeated steps toward other people are a sensible place to start.

What is loneliness, and how is it different from being alone?

The World Health Organization (2025) describes loneliness as the painful feeling of a gap between the connection a person wants and the connection they have. Social isolation is different: it is an objective lack of enough social contact. Someone can be alone without feeling lonely, and England's National Health Service (NHS, 2026) notes that many people feel lonely in a relationship or with friends or family.

Feeling lonely sometimes is part of life, and there is no shame in it. The NHS (2026) says most people feel lonely at times and links it with changes such as moving, illness or bereavement. The World Health Organization (2025) lists causes such as poor health and low income, and notes that some groups face discrimination or extra barriers to connection.

How common is loneliness?

Numbers vary, because surveys ask different questions. The World Health Organization (2025) said that 1 in 6 people worldwide are affected by loneliness, and that 17% to 21% of people aged 13 to 29 reported feeling lonely, with the highest rates among teenagers. Its news release does not name the survey behind these global figures.

In England, the 2024/25 Community Life Survey asked adults how often they felt lonely. In that survey, 7% said often or always and 21% said never.

In 26 U.S. states in 2022, the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System survey found that 32.1% of adults felt socially isolated from others always, usually or sometimes, which a 2024 report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention counted as loneliness. That count includes people who felt this way only sometimes, so it is not directly comparable with the England figure.

What is loneliness linked to, and what can research not prove?

Studies link loneliness with poorer health. A 2015 meta-analysis in Perspectives on Psychological Science, which pooled many earlier studies, linked loneliness to an average 26% increased likelihood of death across studies that adjusted for several other factors. That is an average across large groups, not a forecast for one person, and people's starting health affected the results.

Linked does not mean caused. A 2024 review in World Psychiatry notes that most of the data are observational, so on their own they cannot demonstrate causality. For mental health, it adds, the links can run both ways: loneliness can raise the risk of poorer mental health, and poorer mental health can raise the risk of loneliness.

The same review says evidence from studies that follow people over time points to the direction of effects. In some cases, it adds, the evidence supports a causal link between social connection and later health. Gaps remain.

What have studies of loneliness programs found?

A 2011 meta-analysis in Personality and Social Psychology Review covered 50 studies of programs to reduce loneliness, 20 of them randomized trials, which assign people by chance to a program or a comparison group. The other studies showed bigger drops in loneliness, which may overstate the benefit. Among the randomized trials, the average effect was small.

In that 2011 review, the four trials that targeted unhelpful thinking about social situations, using cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) or reframing, did best. A 2021 meta-analysis of 28 randomized trials in Clinical Psychology Review also found that psychological programs, most often CBT, reduced loneliness by a small to medium amount, though results varied widely.

A 2024 overview of 29 reviews in BMC Public Health found small to moderate benefits where results could be pooled, and mixed or no effect elsewhere. In that overview, psychological programs looked most promising for loneliness, social programs for social isolation, and digital programs showed mixed or no effect. A 2023 rapid review for the UK government, covering 95 studies, found that several approaches helped in the short term, though some evaluations lacked comparison groups.

What can you try, from small steps to bigger ones?

Start small and repeat it. The NHS (2026) advises small targets you can easily reach, not doing everything at once. It warns against comparing yourself with other people's online lives and against using alcohol, gambling or drugs to numb the feeling. Try these steps, roughly from smallest to largest:

• Reach out to one person. Message or call someone you have not spoken to in a while, such as: 'Thinking of you. Want to take a walk on Saturday?' Experiments published in 2023 in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology found that people underestimate how much others appreciate being contacted.
• Add small, regular contact. Say hello to neighbors or chat with the person at your usual cafe. A 2014 study in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin found that students felt happier and more connected on days they talked with more classmates than usual.
• Join something that meets regularly, such as a class, choir, walking group, or faith or community group. If you feel nervous, the NHS (2026) says you can ask to watch a group first.
• Give some time. The NHS (2026) lists volunteering as an option. A 2013 review in BMC Public Health found that studies following volunteers over time linked volunteering with less depression and more life satisfaction, but experiments did not confirm this.
• Use online groups with care. Pick small groups built around an interest. NHS Every Mind Matters suggests meeting new friends in a safe, public place, and the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (2022) warns about romance scams and says never to send money or gifts to a romantic interest you have not met in person.
• Test stuck thoughts. CBT, one of the approaches used in the programs that did best in the 2011 review, teaches people to treat thoughts such as 'nobody wants me there' as guesses to test, not facts. A counselor or therapist can help if these thoughts keep returning.

How can you help someone who is lonely?

The World Health Organization (2025) suggests reaching out to a friend in need, giving someone your full attention instead of looking at your phone, greeting a neighbor, and joining a local group or volunteering. Make an invitation concrete and easy to decline, for example: 'I am walking to the market on Saturday morning. Want to come?'

Be patient. NHS Every Mind Matters notes that admitting to loneliness can be hard. It adds that people who have been lonely for a while may find it harder to be open to connecting, so give them time to respond. Listen more than you advise, and keep in touch after a no.

When should you get more help?

Loneliness is not a personal failing, but it can wear you down. The NHS (2026) suggests seeing a doctor if you are struggling to cope with stress, anxiety or low mood. The NHS also advises this if low mood has lasted more than 2 weeks, or if what you are trying is not helping. In England you can refer yourself to free NHS talking therapies such as CBT. Elsewhere, a doctor or local health service can point you to options.

If you are in the United States and are in crisis or thinking about suicide, call or text 988, or text HOME to 741741 to reach the Crisis Text Line, and call 911 if you are in immediate danger; outside the United States, contact your local emergency services.

What should you do next?

Choose one step and give it a time this week. For example, message an old friend on Monday, say hello to a neighbor on Wednesday, and visit a class or group on Saturday.

In the Solution Oriented Society (SOS) app, the free Social Connection tracker lets you log how lonely you feel each day and choose small connection challenges, such as inviting someone for a walk.

Sources

1. Social connection linked to improved health and reduced risk of early death (World Health Organization, 2025)
2. Community Life Survey 2024/25: Loneliness and support networks (Department for Culture, Media and Sport, GOV.UK (Official Statistics, England), 2025)
3. Loneliness, Lack of Social and Emotional Support, and Mental Health Issues - United States, 2022 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 2024)
4. Loneliness and Social Isolation as Risk Factors for Mortality: A Meta-Analytic Review (Perspectives on Psychological Science, SAGE, 2015)
5. Social connection as a critical factor for mental and physical health: evidence, trends, challenges, and future implications (World Psychiatry, World Psychiatric Association (via PubMed Central), 2024)
6. A Meta-Analysis of Interventions to Reduce Loneliness (Personality and Social Psychology Review, SAGE, 2011)
7. The effectiveness of psychological interventions for loneliness: A systematic review and meta-analysis (Clinical Psychology Review, Elsevier, 2021)
8. Tackling social disconnection: an umbrella review of RCT-based interventions targeting social isolation and loneliness (BMC Public Health, Springer Nature, 2024)
9. Loneliness interventions across the life-course: executive summary (Department for Culture, Media and Sport, GOV.UK, 2023)
10. Get help with loneliness (NHS (National Health Service, England), 2026)
11. Dealing with loneliness (NHS Every Mind Matters (National Health Service, England), 2026)
12. The surprise of reaching out: Appreciated more than we think (Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, American Psychological Association, 2023)
13. Social Interactions and Well-Being: The Surprising Power of Weak Ties (Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, SAGE, 2014)
14. Is volunteering a public health intervention? A systematic review and meta-analysis of the health and survival of volunteers (BMC Public Health, Springer Nature, 2013)
15. What To Know About Romance Scams (U.S. Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Advice, 2022)