*[[Loneliness in Students]] is the focus of our [[Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG)]] for several reasons.* ## 1) Because we know that Salford Students are affected by it ### Research to support the development of our strategic plan - We instructed Alterline to conduct a survey to inform the [[Salford SU Strategy]] and specifically our [[Salford SU Strategy 2023 onwards#Mission|mission]] of 'confronting and overcoming the barriers to learning at Salford'. - The resulting [[Alterline Student Research 2022]] stated the following as primary barriers to Salford students' engagement: ![[Barriers to learning at the University of Salford#Primary barriers]] - "Being isolated from the learning community" is a umbrella term for - "Not getting the social experience they want in uni life" (23% of students experienced this, and it gave a 38% learning engagement penalty) - "Not feeling part of a community of staff and students" - "Not being satisfied with [[Belonging and Fitting In|fitting in]]" - "Not being satisfied with making new friends" - "Not feeling the curriculum has perspectives from a diverse range of people" - "Not feeling course lecturers understand their opinions even when they are different from theirs" - "Not feeling comfortable to approach course lecturers - "Concern about [[loneliness]]" - The reasons given for not feeling a part of the learning community: - Lack of time - Covid 19 - Lack of confidence through not fitting in - Negative or slow interactions with staff. ## 2) Because we know it is something that students and young people feel, nationwide - 9.8% of [[Higher Education Students|students]] said they were lonely (ONS 2018) (see [[Loneliness in Students]]) - 16% of students said they were lonely every day ([[Trendence "only the lonely" survey (2019)]]) - 32% of students said they felt lonely every week ([[Trendence "only the lonely" survey (2019)]]) - 16.6% said they don't have any true friends at University. 20% for international students ([[Trendence "only the lonely" survey (2019)]]) - 8% of students said they didn't have a housemate who was a friend ## 3) Because loneliness has negative impacts, all aspects of the student experience (and the things universities care about) It is an aspect of the [[The University Mental Health Charter 2019]]: - Belonging and social integration are important, not just for student wellbeing, but also for academic achievement and retention (Tinto 1975; Thomas 2012; Kahu & Nelson 2018). - Student loneliness has been shown to be the strongest overall predictor of mental distress in the student population (McIntyre et al 2018) - We know that perceived loneliness reduces cognitive function, mood, and immunity (Cacioppo & Patrick 2008), and loneliness has a direct negative effect on academic performance (Baumeister, Twenge & Nuss 2002). ### Short term impacts of loneliness - Impacts on academic performance, including many aspects of executive function such as task performance, reasoning and decision making (Ozcelik and Barsade, 2018). See [[Impact of loneliness on academic performance]] - Impacts on wellbeing and is associated with depression and anxiety ([[Source - How to Tackle Student Loneliness by Loades et al|Loades et al]]). See [[Impact of loneliness on mental health and psychological wellbeing]] - Many of the skills we're trying to foster at University- teamwork, communication, leadership - have social [[connection]] as a foundational skill. see [[Impact of loneliness on career prospects and employability]] - Fuels long-term loneliness, if unchecked. - Means students are more likely to drop out. See [[Impact of loneliness on dropping out of university]]. ### Long term impacts of loneliness - Greater risk of cardiovascular disease, dementia, depression, and anxiety (Holt-Lunstad, Smith & Layton, 2010). See [[Impact of loneliness on physical health and functioning]] - There are worse impacts if the individual is also a part of an ostracised or marginalised group. Also if they're a perfectionist. See [[Trendence "only the lonely" survey (2019)#Anxious students]]). ## References - Julianne Holt-Lunstad, Timothy B. Smith, and J. Bradley Layton, “Social Relationships and Mortality Risk: A Meta-Analytic Review,” PLoS Medicine 7, no. 7 (2010):1–20. doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1000316. - Hakan Ozcelik and Sigal G. Barsade, "No Employee an Island: Workplace Loneliness and Employee Performance" in the Academy of Management Journal, Vol 61, No 6 (2018): doi: [https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2015.1066](https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2015.1066) - [[Source - How to Tackle Student Loneliness by Loades et al]] - Tinto, V. (1975). Dropout from Higher Education: A Theoretical Synthesis of Recent Research. Review of Educational Research, 45(1), pp. 89–125 - Thomas, L. (2012). Building student engagement and belonging in higher education at a time of change: Final report from the What Works? Student retention and success programme. London: Paul Hamlyn Foundation. - Kahu, E.R. & Nelson, K (2018) Student engagement in the educational interface: understanding the mechanisms of student success, Higher Education Research & Development, 37:1, pp. 58–71, DOI: 10.1080/07294360.2017.1344197 - McIntyre, J.C., Worsley, J., Corcoran, R., Harrison Woods, P. & Bentall, R. (2018) Academic and non–academic predictors of student psychological distress: the role of social identity and loneliness, Journal of Mental Health, 27:3, pp. 230–239, DOI: 10.1080/09638237.2018.1437608 - Baumeister, R., Twenge & Nuss, C. K. (2002). Effects of social exclusion on cognitive processes: Anticipated aloneness reduces intelligent thought. Journal of personality and social psychology. 83, pp. 817–827.