Loneliness as a public health issue in context: capturing experiences and social determinants of loneliness in diverse young adults in London & Tokyo

The last decade of research points to a global trend of increasing numbers of adults feeling lonely -
though rates of increase differ greatly between countries and regions. Contrary to the narrative that
loneliness is a problem mainly faced by the elderly, national and local government statistics
suggest rates of loneliness are equal or even higher in young adulthood. As people reporting
loneliness are more likely to experience later mental and physical health problems, addiction, self-injury and reduced quality of life, rising rates are an alarming development for academics and
public health officials alike. Yet there remain gaps in our knowledge around what social
circumstances increase risk for and maintain loneliness, and research is limited by current tools for
quantitative measurement.

This project brings together two ongoing studies of young people's mental health in London and
Tokyo to 1) qualitatively investigate experiences and social determinants of loneliness in diverse
groups of young people, and 2) develop a new, cross-culturally valid questionnaire for measuring
young adult loneliness in the general population. Given the attention that loneliness is receiving in
both countries - epitomized by their recent appointments of "Ministers for Loneliness" - conducting
this work in both the UK and Japan presents a unique opportunity to inform domestic public health
policy and global efforts to tackle social isolation.