Personality Determinants of the Sense of Loneliness among Prisoners in the Five-Factor Model of Personality

Introduction: The sense of loneliness and loneliness are phenomena connected with human social development and they demand interdisciplinary analysis of philosophical, sociological and psychoeducational types. Research Aim: The aim of the paper is the analysis of the personality conditioning of loneliness in the context of the Bog Five theory. Method: Two groups of 42 people were investigated: one group consisted of the first time sentenced, second consisted of recidivists. They were investigated with two questionnaires: UCLA and NEO-FFI. Results: Significant differences were found between groups in extraversion, conscientiousness, and low belief of belonging to a social group. Higher scores were achieved by recidivists. More significant correlations between variables of Big Five and loneliness dimensions were obtained in the group of first time sentenced, whereas in the group of recidivists significant correlations concerned only extraversion. Models of multiple regression revealed significant prediction power of agreeableness for almost all examined aspects of loneliness. The same dependence concerning neurotism and conscientiousness was revealed but it was observed less often. Conclusion: Obtained results suggest the need of future exploration aimed at using them in the penitentiary resocialization.