The relationship between depression and loneliness levels of the students at the faculty of health sciences and the factors affecting them

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of this study is to determine the relationship between the loneliness and depression levels of students studying at Inonu University, Faculty of Health Sciences, Departments of Nursing, Midwifery, Physiotherapy, Audiology and Child Development and the factors that affect these levels. Design and Methods:This descriptive cross-sectional study which used a sociodemographic information form, the UCLA Loneliness Scale and the Beck Depression Inventory included 1004 students.Findings: According to the results of the research, there was a positive relationship between loneliness and depression levels among university students. Class year, family type, place of residence, mother's education level, and economic situation were important indicators of loneliness and depression.Practice Implications: Psychiatric nurses can help students express their psychological difficulties and help them change their behaviors and lifestyles.

Correlation between smartphone addiction and loneliness levels in nursing students

“…Previous research focused on SA and its impact on face‐to‐face communication revealed that loneliness and SA are positively correlated and that loneliness is the strongest determinant of SA 3,18‐22 . It is known that the loneliness is a serious problem in young adolescents and the problematic mobile phone use is an individual coping method for loneliness in this population 15,23 . NSs use smartphones more intensively to address both the problems they face in adapting to a new city and university environment, as well as the loneliness of leaving the social environment 23 .…”

“…3,[18][19][20][21][22] It is known that the loneliness is a serious problem in young adolescents and the problematic mobile phone use is an individual coping method for loneliness in this population. 15,23 NSs use smartphones more intensively to address both the problems they face in adapting to a new city and university environment, as well as the loneliness of leaving the social environment. 23 This makes NSs feel lonelier.…”

“…15,23 NSs use smartphones more intensively to address both the problems they face in adapting to a new city and university environment, as well as the loneliness of leaving the social environment. 23 This makes NSs feel lonelier. 24 It was reported that NSs experienced moderate and high levels of loneliness in the rates ranging from 51.9% to 58.3%.…”

“…24 It was reported that NSs experienced moderate and high levels of loneliness in the rates ranging from 51.9% to 58.3%. 23,25,26 Although smartphones are used as a coping method, it is a fact that it affects face-toface interpersonal communication negatively and leads to even more loneliness. 17,24 After graduation, NSs are expected to work in harmony with patients, patient relatives, and healthcare team members.…”

Subjective well-being and social-emotional loneliness of university students: The mediating effect of the meaning of life

“…Due to the increasing feeling of loneliness, mental health problems are quite common among university student populations (Musiat et al, 2018). Various studies in the literature have shown that loneliness is a serious issue determined to be highly associated with pathological conditions such as depression (Kılınç et al, 2020;Lee & Bierman, 2019;Yavuzer et al, 2019), anxiety (Moeller & Seehuus, 2019), and suicide (Chang et al, 2019;Chang et al, 2017).…”