PSYCHOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF LONELINESS AND SOLITUDE IN YOUTH

Abstract

The article analyzes the concept of loneliness and seclusion, distinguishes types of loneliness: physical, communicative, emotional, spiritual and social and criteria of positive seclusion. Based on the theoretical analysis of existing theoretical models and empirical studies of various aspects of loneliness, the following approaches are summarized and revealed: psychoanalytic (result of negative impact on childhood), existential (phenomenon of self-reflection of the individual, the result of spiritual self-improvement and a kind of search for oneself, a person’s awareness of his uniqueness, meaning life) and the interactionist approach (emphasizes attention on internal and external factors in the emergence and development of loneliness). It was found that early youth is characterized by the maximum intensity of experiencing loneliness, and that young people use destructive ways to overcome loneliness, which increases the negative consequences of experiencing this process itself, therefore it is important to implement a program of psychological assistance for people who suffer from frequent and intense experience feeling lonely. Personal traits of a lonely personality in youth are singled out: lack of close intimate attachment, lack of meaningful friendships, emotional isolation, social isolation, high level of social anxiety, depression. It is emphasized that the state of loneliness can be caused by various factors: loss of loved ones, forced relocation to a new place of residence, social discrimination, inability to establish and maintain interpersonal relationships. Loneliness is defined as a complex multidimensional construct, a state of emotional and social isolation of an individual from other people, which leads to the dissatisfaction of the individual’s need for interpersonal interaction and can be the cause of various types of addictions, autoaggressive or antisocial behavior. It was found that positive solitude is an individual’s tendency to use internal reserves for self-discovery and self-development, experiencing positive emotions, as well as the ability to consciously spend time alone.