A COMPARATIVE STUDY TO ASSESS THE LONELINESS AMONG ELDERLY MEN AND WOMEN IN SELECTED RESIDENTIAL AREAS OF DELHI WITH A VIEW TO DEVELOP AND DISSEMINATE AN INFORMATION BOOKLET ON COPING WITH LONELINESS

Loneliness has long been identified as problem associated with old age and denotes a lack of quantity and quality of social contacts. It is a state in which one experiences a powerful feeling of emptiness and isolation. A comparative study to assess the loneliness was conducted on the elderly men and women of selected residential areas of Delhi. The objectives of the study were to (1) To assess loneliness among elderly men and women. (2) To compare loneliness between elderly men and women. (3) To assess the factors responsible for loneliness among elderly men and women. (4) To find out the relationship between loneliness and working status. (5) To develop and disseminate an information booklet on coping with loneliness among elderly. The conceptual framework of the present study is based on Discrepancy Model of Loneliness, a quantitative research approach was used for the study. A structured interview schedule and a recording sheet were prepared. The Reliability of tool was worked out by using Cronbach?s alpha and was found to be 0.86. The study was conducted on 100 elderly subjects (50 men and 50 women) aged 60 years purposely selected from residential areas of Delhi. Purposive non probability sampling technique was adopted to select the elderly men and women from selected residential areas of Uttam Nagar, New Delhi from 7th October to 17th October 2014. The patients who met the study inclusion criteria were selected using convenient sampling techniques. Data gathered were analyzed and interpreted using both descriptive and inferential statistics. The study Results revealed that elderly men and women experienced loneliness in equal measure and most of them suffered from moderate loneliness. The most common factor responsible for loneliness among elderly men and women was children too busy in their jobs and loss of power and status in the family respectively. Also, the least common factor for loneliness among elderly men and women was personal choice to stay away / independently from children and grandchildren. Further, working status had a significant relationship with loneliness experienced by elderly men and women.