The DOI matches its Crossref record; 96 of the 96 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Loneliness Across Phylogeny and a Call for Comparative Studies and Animal Models
Open accessAbstract
Loneliness typically refers to the feelings of distress and dysphoria resulting from a discrepancy between a person’s desired and achieved levels of social relations, and there is now considerable evidence that loneliness is a risk factor for poor psychological and physical health. Loneliness has traditionally been conceptualized as a uniquely human phenomenon. However, over millions of years of evolution, efficient and manifold neural, hormonal, and molecular mechanisms have evolved for promoting companionship and mutual protection/assistance and for organizing adaptive responses when there is a significant discrepancy between the preferred and realized levels of social connection. We review evidence suggesting that loneliness is not a uniquely human phenomenon, but, instead, as a scientific construct, it represents a generally adaptive predisposition that can be found across phylogeny. Central to this argument is the premise that the brain is the key organ of social connections and processes. Comparative studies and animal models, particularly when integrated with human studies, have much to contribute to the understanding of loneliness and its underlying principles, mechanisms, consequences, and potential treatments.
Overview
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“Health behaviors and physiologic mechanisms are likely, in part, responsible for the negative health outcomes associated with social isolation and loneliness [31–34].”
From Examining social isolation and loneliness in combination in relation to social support and psychological distress using Canadian Longitudinal Study of Aging (CLSA) data (2020) · cites this paper as [31]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredThe source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“as well as physiologic responses, including increased blood pressure and heightened inflammatory reactivity to stress [30–34].”
From Examining social isolation and loneliness in combination in relation to social support and psychological distress using Canadian Longitudinal Study of Aging (CLSA) data (2020) · cites this paper as [31]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredIn the citing paper
“Therefore, an emerging social neuroscience model posits that evolutionarily conserved neurophysiological mechanisms underlie the adaptive, short-term, self-preservation mode triggered by a lack of social connections/mutual protection14,31.”
From Neural mechanisms of social homeostasis (2019) · cites this paper as [14]
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Citations
Cites
The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index: a new instrument for psychiatric practice and research
Buysse, D. J., Reynolds, C. F., Monk, T. H., Berman, S. R., & Kupfer, D. J. (1989) · Psychiatry Research · doi:10.1016/0165-1781(89)90047-4 · Cited by 35,234
Telling more than we can know: Verbal reports on mental processes.
Nisbett, R. E., & Wilson, T. D. (1977) · Psychological Review · doi:10.1037/0033-295x.84.3.231 · Cited by 11,317
Power failure: why small sample size undermines the reliability of neuroscience
Button, K. S., Ioannidis, J. P. A., Mokrysz, C., Nosek, B. A., Flint, J., Robinson, E. S. J., & Munafò, M. R. (2013) · Nature Reviews Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/nrn3475 · Cited by 7,641 · cited 1×
“Small sample sizes and underpowered studies, coupled with an emphasis on null hypothesis testing, likely have contributed to some of these inconsistencies (see Button et al., 2013).”
Loneliness and Social Isolation as Risk Factors for Mortality: A Meta-Analytic Review
Holt-Lunstad, J., Smith, T. B., Baker, M., Harris, T., & Stephenson, D. (2015) · Perspectives on Psychological Science · doi:10.1177/1745691614568352 · Cited by 6,043
The Revised UCLA Loneliness Scale: concurrent and discriminant validity evidence
Russell, D., Peplau, L. A., & Cutrona, C. E. (1980) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.39.3.472 · Cited by 5,173
Being and Nothingness: An Essay on Phenomenological Ontology.
Natanson, M., Sartre, J., & Barnes, H. E. (1958) · Philosophy and Phenomenological Research · doi:10.2307/2104548 · Cited by 2,536
Loneliness: the experience of emotional and social isolation
Weiss, R. S. (1974) · Cited by 2,513
Cacioppo, J. T., Hughes, M. E., Waite, L. J., Hawkley, L. C., & Thisted, R. A. (2006) · Psychology and Aging · doi:10.1037/0882-7974.21.1.140 · Cited by 2,380
Self-citationPerceived social isolation and cognition
Cacioppo, J. T., & Hawkley, L. C. (2009) · Trends in Cognitive Sciences · doi:10.1016/j.tics.2009.06.005 · Cited by 2,144
Self-citationLoneliness: A Source Book of Current Theory, Research and Therapy
Blazer, D. G. (1983) · Journal of Gerontology · doi:10.1093/geronj/38.4.492 · Cited by 2,139
Research works printed but not linked: 4
- Egidi G., 2008, 20th Annual Meeting of the Association for Psycho-logical Science
- Mason W. A., 1970, Early experience on visual information processing in perceptual and reading disorders, 302
- Peplau L. A., 1979, New approaches to social problems: Applications of attribution theory, 53
- Tillich P., 1959, The meaning of death, 30
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Items 201–239 of 239
Thagard, P. R. (2019) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190678739.003.0005
Thagard, P. R. (2019) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190678739.003.0003
Thagard, P. R. (2019) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190678739.003.0001
Friendship in the age of COVID-19
Ryan, T. (2022) · Postgraduate Medical Journal · doi:10.1136/postgradmedj-2022-141880
Einsames Sterben und unentdeckte Tode
Loke, S. (2022) · Kulturen der Gesellschaft · doi:10.14361/9783839463505-011
Sipowicz, K., & Pietras, T. (2023) · Polski Merkuriusz Lekarski · doi:10.36740/merkur202303116
Social relationships and health: What do we know and where do we go from here?
Rutledge, T. R., & Virzi, N. E. (2023) · Kardiologia Polska · doi:10.33963/v.kp.98351
Social reinforcement guides operant behaviour and auditory learning in a songbird
Macêdo-Lima, M., Fernández-Vargas, M., & Remage‐Healey, L. (2024) · Animal Behaviour · doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2024.01.026
Thagard, P. R. (2019) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190678739.002.0007
Ritter, F. E. (2019) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190678739.002.0011
Thagard, P. R. (2019) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190678739.002.0005
Thagard, P. R. (2019) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190678739.002.0004
Thagard, P. R. (2019) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190678739.002.0008
Reducing loneliness and social isolation among the elderly during the COVID-19 pandemic
Meng, X., Li, M., & Su, Y. (2024) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-323-95648-2.00019-8
La soledad desde la perspectiva de niños y niñas de la ciudad de Posadas, Misiones
Chemisquy, S. N., Arevalo, L. N., & Maceda, L. G. (2024) · Persona · doi:10.26439/persona2024.n27(1).6762
Ghoghre, S. (2024) · International Journal For Multidisciplinary Research · doi:10.36948/ijfmr.2024.v06i04.26433
Psychoneuroimmunology of the Perceived Social Isolation/Loneliness
Vlachos, I. I., Ayres, C., Huber, M., Jacoby, M., Oikonomopoulos, A., Psara, E., & Cambanis, A. (2024) · Integrated science · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-73061-0_13
Gregory, T. R., Taylor-Bragge, R. L., McLachlan, A., Bird, M. Y., & Perreault, M. L. (2025) · Developments in neuroethics and bioethics · doi:10.1016/bs.dnb.2025.02.002
McMillan, F. D. (2025) · CABI eBooks · doi:10.1079/9781800624313.0009
Zhang, X., Zhang, L., Huo, S., Lu, Y., Hua, X., & Zhong, X. (2025) · Medicine · doi:10.1097/md.0000000000043188
Behavior Genetic Analysis of Loneliness
Dargan, S., MacDonald, K. B., & Schermer, J. A. (2025) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-032-02959-1_13
Loneliness, Love and Their Connection: A Commentary
Rokach, A. (2025) · OBM Neurobiology · doi:10.21926/obm.neurobiol.2504312
Nishimura, T., Murakami, T., & Sakurai, S. (2022) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.20193492
Loneliness Effects on PersonalityPreprint
Neyer, F. J., & Mund, M. (2018) · OSF Preprints (OSF Preprints)
Relationships and Physical Health
Holt-Lunstad, J. (2026) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/9781009381949.032
Stress, health and social behavior
Kareklas, K., & Oliveira, R. F. (2026) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-443-29068-8.00216-6
Surkalim, D. L., Farzana, A., Choo, W. Y., Hussein, S., Hébert, P. C., Welch, V. A., Ghogomu, E. T., & Mikton, C. (2026) · Population Health Metrics · doi:10.1186/s12963-026-00472-7
Does the relationship between health and behavior depend on changes in immune functioning?
Kaplan, R. M. (2026) · Translational Behavioral Medicine · doi:10.1093/tbm/ibag013
Swipe right on AI: Understanding psychological profiles behind chatbot love
Fang, Z., & Bian, Y. (2026) · Current Psychology · doi:10.1007/s12144-026-09434-6
Carlson, B., Miedler, C., Muldoon, M., Redhwan, T., Sumida, B., Marquez, M., Velvizhi, S. R. S., Yuan, R., Zhang, Y., Teachman, B. A., et al. (2026) · Systems and Information Engineering Design Symposium · doi:10.1109/sieds69358.2026.11540144
Arrington, M. N., Swartz, J. R., Fine, J., & Guyer, A. E. (2026) · Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience · doi:10.1016/j.dcn.2026.101774
Forgeron, P. A., Dick, B. D., Qualter, P., Birinie, K., Finley, G. A., Jordan, A. L., Bradley, C., Linkiewich, D., Lowthian, T., McNally, S., et al. (2026) · European Journal of Pain · doi:10.1002/ejp.70322
Social Isolation, Loneliness and Subclinical Atherosclerosis
Li, H., & Xia, N. (2026) · Current Atherosclerosis Reports · doi:10.1007/s11883-026-01447-7
The Role of Temperament in Adolescent Loneliness: Psychological Flexibility as a Protective Factor
Salin, V. B., Repo, E., Tunkkari, M., Hämäläinen, T., Lappalainen, P., & Kiuru, N. H. (2026) · Cognitive Therapy and Research · doi:10.1007/s10608-026-10775-6
Tang, M. Y., Cao, M. Y., Xue, M. Y., Sun, M. C., Li, M. A., Zhang, M. X., & Hu, M. (2026) · Brain Behavior & Immunity - Health · doi:10.1016/j.bbih.2026.101360
Dodell‐Feder, D., Gibbs, K., Silverstein, S. M., & Tamir, D. (2026) · Perspectives on Psychological Science · doi:10.1177/17456916261479653
Cognitive, emotional and interpersonal determinants of loneliness in brain injury survivors
Salas, C. E., Ureta, H., Rojas‐Líbano, D., Castro, O., Cruces, R., Evans, J., & Aliaga, A. (2026) · Neuropsychological Rehabilitation · doi:10.1080/09602011.2026.2742361
Li, T., Yuan, Y., Prentice, C., & Wang, F. (2026) · Psychology and Marketing · doi:10.1002/mar.70285
Metadata
- Authors
- Cacioppo, J. T., Cacioppo, S., Cole, S. W., Capitanio, J. P., Goossens, L., & Boomsma, D. I.
- Affiliations
- University of Chicago (US)
- David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles
- University of California, Davis (US)
- KU Leuven (BE)
- Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (NL)
- Venue
- Perspectives on Psychological Science
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2015-03
- Volume
- 10
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 202-212
- ISSN
- 1745-6916 (ISSN-L)
- 1745-6924
- PMC
- PMC5090712
- OpenAlex
- W2105989054
- Cited by
- 241
- References
- 96
- Citations by year
- 2026: 20 · 2025: 22 · 2024: 22 · 2023: 19 · 2022: 21 · 2021: 25 · 2020: 14 · 2019: 36 · 2018: 18 · 2017: 14 · 2016: 11 · 2015: 17
- FWCI
- 24.85
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Perspectives on Psychological Science (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- VU Research Portal (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Lirias (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institutes of Health (P51OD011107)
- National Institute on Aging (R37AG033590)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Health › Health disparities and outcomes
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
- Keywords
- loneliness, social connectedness, social behavior, brain and social behavior
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Humans, Loneliness
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
