Increasing loneliness among German children and adolescents from 2018 to 2022: A cross-sectional survey before and after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract Aim Loneliness is an increasingly present topic in scientific and public discourse, and has gained relevance due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Nevertheless, there is a lack of representative studies examining the prevalence of loneliness among children and adolescents before and after the pandemic. Accordingly, the present study aimed to determine the prevalence of loneliness among 11- to 15-year-old students before (2018) and after (2022) the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and to investigate subgroup differences. Subject and methods In this cross-sectional Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study, the prevalence of loneliness was compared in two representative samples from the German federal state of Brandenburg from 2018 and 2022. In 2018, data were collected from 3,057 (51.8% girls, M age = 13.1, SD = 1.7) and, in 2022, from 3,801 (52.6% girls, M age = 13.5, SD = 1.6) students in general education schools. Loneliness was assessed using a single item from the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). Chi-square test and logistic regressions were performed. Results In total, 11.8% of the students reported being lonely in 2018, and 19.3% reported being lonely in 2022. Loneliness was more prevalent among girls, nonbinary, older adolescents, and students with lower family affluence. The increase in loneliness did not differ depending on age, gender, or family affluence. Conclusion The findings highlight that loneliness among children and adolescents is a widespread phenomenon that has increased significantly from 2018 to 2022. There is a need for prevention measures and further research into health-related associations of loneliness.