40 The Professional Counselor | Volume 13, Issue 1 Literature Review Loneliness Loneliness is viewed as a complex multidimensional and subjective psychological construct that is seen from an individual’s perspective. DiTommaso et al. (2015) described loneliness as a temporary psychological response to changes in one’s social environment or a stable dissatisfaction with one’s personal network, while Perlman and Peplau (1981) viewed it as a negative feeling that occurs when individuals do not perceive the quality or quantity of their social relationships as satisfying. Early researchers like Perlman and Peplau (1981) identified three types of loneliness: (a) chronic loneliness, or a long-term experience of feelings of separation and isolation over several years; (b) situation loneliness, or a disruption of one’s social relationship patterns; and (c) transient loneliness, described as the occasional feelings of loneliness experienced at different times when one is making changes throughout the life span. Yanguas et al. (2018) highlighted a dichotomous view of loneliness, identifying social loneliness (lacking a sense of community and connection to social network) and emotional loneliness (lacking attachment figures and companionship), and noting that an individual can experience loneliness in both areas simultaneously. Loneliness as a developmental issue can occur at different periods in people’s lives. For example, for emerging adults (i.e.,18–25 years old) this period is marked by transitions that can predispose them to experiencing loneliness (Moeller & Seehuus, 2019). Emerging adults overlap two critical stages in Erikson’s (1980) psychosocial development theory. The first stage of identity versus role confusion (12–19 age range) is marked by a sense of ego identity in which the individual seeks balance and congruence between their self-perception and how others perceive them. The second stage is intimacy versus isolation (20–25 age range), in which the goal is to establish committed relationships with friends and develop intimate romantic relationships. Erikson posited that individuals who were unsuccessful at the earlier stages, and were lacking a strong sense of identity, may struggle in building healthy relationships. This in turn can result in emotional distress and isolations, as they will be unable to establish the committed relationships that are needed to resolve this stage and experience loneliness. There are normative transitions many emerging adults make that can precipitate feelings of loneliness, like leaving home, beginning college, or starting a full-time job. Additionally, the maturation changes from adolescence to emerging adulthood (Chickering & Reisser, 1993), along with the psychosocial development crisis of intimacy versus isolation, can impact emerging adults’ self-perception of loneliness (Qualter et al., 2015). At the beginning of college, students may not have relationships with peers at their institutions and will need to establish connections in this new social context (Thurber & Walton, 2012). This new context may be bigger or smaller than home, or it may be less diverse or more diverse from their home communities, thereby decreasing students’ feelings of connection. Colleges often give much attention to transition issues experienced at the beginning of college (Bruffaerts et al., 2018); however, these experiences can persist throughout the college years. Moeller and Seehuus (2019) noted that students are challenged to build and sustain relationships in this social context while also navigating and balancing a more demanding academic workload, new expectations around academic productivity and engagement, and developmental changes as they transition from adolescence to adulthood. This period of transition and competing priorities can be challenging for students as they attempt new things, try to integrate, and adjust to the changes to their personal and academic lives and make decisions about what is important to them. For some, this can be overwhelming, and their inability to cope with these challenges and form meaningful relationships in this social context can precipitate
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