A 6-Item Scale for Overall, Emotional, and Social Loneliness: Confirmatory Tests on Survey Data
Open accessAbstract
Loneliness is an indicator of social well-being and pertains to the feeling of missing an intimate relationship (emotional loneliness) or missing a wider social network (social loneliness). The 11-item De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale has proved to be a valid and reliable measurement instrument for overall, emotional, and social loneliness, although its length has sometimes rendered it difficult to use in large surveys. In this study, the authors empirically tested a shortened version of the scale on data from two surveys ( N = 9,448). Confirmatory factor analyses confirmed the specification of two latent factors. Congruent validity and the relationship with determinants (partner status, health) proved to be optimal. The 6-item De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale is a reliable and valid measurement instrument for overall, emotional, and social loneliness that is suitable for large surveys.
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The De Jong-Gierveld Loneliness Scale had Cronbach's α = 0.70; item 5 was excluded due to low reliability.
“Loneliness.To measure this construct, the 6-Item De Jong-Gierveld Loneliness Scale (De Jong Gierveld & Van Tilburg, 2006) was utilized (e.g.,”
From Social anxiety mediates the effect of attachment to parents on friendships and loneliness during the college transition (2023) · cites this paper as De Jong Gierveld & Van Tilburg, 2006
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- Authors
- Gierveld, J. D. J., & Tilburg, T. V.
- Affiliations
- Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute (NL)
- Vrije Universiteit
- Corresponding author
- Gierveld, Jenny De Jong
- Venue
- Research on Aging
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2006-09
- Volume
- 28
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 582-598
- ISSN
- 0164-0275 (ISSN-L)
- 1552-7573
- OpenAlex
- W2096847786
- Cited by
- 1,467
- References
- 7
- Citations by year
- 2026: 150 · 2025: 170 · 2024: 181 · 2023: 169 · 2022: 178 · 2021: 165 · 2020: 97 · 2019: 83 · 2018: 55 · 2017: 57 · 2016: 35 · 2015: 26 · 2014: 22 · 2013: 20 · 2012: 19
- FWCI
- 4.36
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- research.vu.nl
- Locations
- Research on Aging (publishedVersion)
- KNAW research portal (Royal Academy of Art and Sciences (KNAW)) (publishedVersion)
- Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) (submittedVersion)
- VU Research Portal (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Funders
- Universiteit van Amsterdam
- Universiteit Utrecht
- Universiteit van Tilburg (480-10-009)
- Nederlands Interdisciplinair Demografisch Instituut
- National Key Research and Development Program of China
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Health › Health disparities and outcomes
- Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › Management Science and Operations Research › Psychometric Methodologies and Testing
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Neuropsychology and Physiological Psychology › Aging and Gerontology Research
- Keywords
- loneliness, emotional loneliness, social loneliness, De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale, scale shortening, psychometric validation, factor structure, partner status, social well-being
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