MSGID: 1:317/3 6430ede5   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    Lonely people's divergent thought processes may contribute to feeling   
   'alone in a crowded room'    
      
     Date:   
         April 7, 2023   
     Source:   
         Association for Psychological Science   
     Summary:   
         The neural responses of lonely individuals differ from those of   
         other people, suggesting that seeing the world differently may be   
         a risk factor for loneliness regardless of friendships.   
      
      
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   FULL STORY   
   ==========================================================================   
   Common wisdom suggests that a core difference between solitude and   
   loneliness is choice. Whereas a person who appreciates solitude might   
   choose to enjoy a quiet night in or a solo trip abroad, a lonely person   
   may feel disconnected from other people even in a crowded room. New   
   research published in Psychological Science supports this notion,   
   suggesting that lonely people may think differently regardless of the   
   size of their social networks.   
      
      
   ==========================================================================   
   "We found that lonely individuals are exceptionally dissimilar to   
   their peers in the way that they process the world around them ... even   
   when taking into account the number of friends that they have," said   
   lead author Elisa C. Baek (University of Southern California) in an   
   interview. Her study showed that lonely individuals' neural responses   
   differ from those of other people, suggesting that "seeing the world   
   differently than those around you may be a risk factor for loneliness,   
   even if you regularly socialize with them."  Baek and colleagues Ryan   
   Hyon, Karina Lo'pez, Meng Du, Mason A. Porter, and Carolyn Parkinson   
   (University of California, Los Angeles [UCLA]) came to this conclusion   
   by comparing the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans of   
   63 first-year university students.   
      
   During each 90-minute scan, participants viewed 14 engaging video clips   
   in the same order. After the scan, they self-reported their feelings   
   of social connection using the UCLA Loneliness Scale. Earlier in the   
   academic year, each participant had also completed a social network   
   survey in which they were asked to list the names of each person with   
   whom they studied, ate meals, or otherwise hung out during their first   
   several months as students.   
      
   In order to analyze these data, Baek and colleagues divided participants   
   into two groups: a "lonely" group with participants who scored higher   
   than the median on the loneliness scale and a nonlonely group with   
   participants who scored under the median.   
      
   When the researchers compared these participants' scans, they found that   
   the brain activity of lonely participants was very dissimilar to that of   
   both nonlonely participants and other lonely participants. By comparison,   
   the brain activity of nonlonely participants was similar to that of other   
   nonlonely participants. This was especially true in the default-mode   
   network, in which shared brain activity appears to be associated with   
   interpreting narratives and friendships in a similar manner, and in   
   the reward-processing areas of the brain, the researchers wrote. These   
   findings remained significant even when the researchers controlled for   
   demographic characteristics and the size of participants' social networks.   
      
   "Lonely people process the world idiosyncratically, which may contribute   
   to the reduced sense of being understood that often accompanies   
   loneliness," the researchers explained.   
      
   Additional research is needed in order to determine the underlying cause   
   of these results, however, Baek said.   
      
   "One possibility is that lonely individuals do not find value in the   
   same aspects of situations or scenes as their peers," Baek and colleagues   
   wrote.   
      
   "This may result in a reinforcing feedback loop in which lonely   
   individuals perceive themselves to be different from their peers, which   
   may in turn lead to further challenges in achieving social connection."   
   Another possibility is that loneliness itself could lead people to   
   process information differently, the researchers added.   
      
   In either case, learning more about how lonely people think, and how   
   to promote shared understanding, could help identify new pathways for   
   reducing loneliness, Baek said.   
      
       * RELATED_TOPICS   
             o Mind_&_Brain   
                   # Psychology # Social_Psychology # Relationships   
                   # Intelligence # Brain-Computer_Interfaces #   
                   Gender_Difference # Learning_Disorders # Perception   
       * RELATED_TERMS   
             o Neural_network o Public_health o Charisma o Paranoia   
             o Nocebo_-_Placebo o Emotion o Cognitive_neuroscience o   
             Social_inclusion   
      
   ==========================================================================   
   Story Source: Materials provided by   
   Association_for_Psychological_Science. Note: Content may be edited for   
   style and length.   
      
      
   ==========================================================================   
   Journal Reference:   
      1. Elisa C. Baek, Ryan Hyon, Karina Lo'pez, Meng Du, Mason A. Porter,   
         Carolyn Parkinson. Lonely Individuals Process the World in   
         Idiosyncratic Ways. Psychological Science, 2023; 095679762211453   
         DOI: 10.1177/ 09567976221145316   
   ==========================================================================   
      
   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/04/230407124558.htm   
      
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