“Oh my God I am alone”: young adult students’ experiences of living alone in a time of global uncertainty

ABSTRACT

This study explores young adult students’ experiences of living alone during the COVID-19 pandemic, addressing a vital research gap by investigating the collective influence of youth, student status, and solitary living on mental health. Remote semi-structured interviews were conducted with 18–24-year-olds in UK universities who had lived alone for at least 2 weeks between September 2020 and March 2021 (N = 8; 4 males; 19–24 years, M = 21.75). Reflexive thematic analysis identified four themes and two subthemes. Living alone was experienced as confinement, accompanied by loneliness and perceptions of loss and injustice. The experience significantly impacted mental health, which was exacerbated by social isolation and withdrawal. Accessing social support and connection through technology was protective. Findings have implications for the design of interventions for young people dealing with isolation. Improving emotion regulation and social skills and preventing social withdrawal are important intervention targets.

KEYWORDS:

• Mental health
• loneliness
• social isolation
• young adults
• students
• COVID-19

Background

Globally, there has been a substantial increase in the prevalence of diagnosed psychiatric disorders and mental health symptoms among young people (Goodwin et al., 2020; Pitchforth et al., 2019; Racine et al., 2021). Increasing rates of mental health disturbance are also observed among the UK student body (Royal College of Psychiatrists, 2011), and similarly in Australia rates of mental health problems are significantly higher among university students relative to the general population (Stallman, 2010). Adolescence and emerging adulthood is a key period for the development of long-term mental health conditions (Aalto-Setälä et al., 2002; Andrews et al., 2021; Rapee et al., 2019), which have been linked to loneliness (Christiansen et al., 2021; Loades et al., 2020; Qualter et al., 2010; Wei et al., 2005). Research has shown that younger adults and university students are particularly vulnerable to loneliness (Barreto et al., 2021; Bu et al., 2020; Groarke et al., 2020; Özdemir & Tuncay, 2008; Victor & Yang, 2011; von Soest et al., 2020). Furthermore, major life and social transitions common among youth, such as moving to a new city/country to study, have been identified as risk factors for loneliness (Korzhina et al., 2022; Sundqvist & Hemberg, 2021). Among university students, loneliness is one of the strongest predictors of distress and reduced wellbeing (Brett et al., 2022; McIntyre et al., 2018) and predicts worse health outcomes (Peltzer & Pengpid, 2017). With many students moving away from home and their existing support networks (Scanlon et al., 2007) the transition to university involves multiple stressors representing additional risk factors for poor mental health (Gall et al., 2000).

In tandem with younger age and student status, living alone has emerged as another demographic risk factor for loneliness and poor mental health. Living in single member households is increasingly common, but has been connected with increasing levels of loneliness (Klinenberg, 2016; Snell, 2017). Living alone is often included as an indicator of isolation (Klinenberg, 2016; Smith & Victor, 2019) and has been found to be a predictor of loneliness at all ages (Hawkley et al., 2022). In older adulthood, living alone has been associated with reduced health and wellbeing (Beller & Wagner, 2018) and loneliness was associated with increased mortality among older adults living alone (O’Súilleabháin et al., 2019). Analysis of longitudinal data from the National Psychiatric Morbidity Survey in England found that mental disorders were significantly more common in people living alone, and that this relationship was explained by higher loneliness (Jacob et al., 2019). Yet, despite this comprehensive understanding, there remains a notable gap in our knowledge regarding the impact of living alone in younger adulthood.

The relevance of living alone to the mental health of younger adults becomes even more pronounced in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Independent studies in the UK and China have identified both younger age and living alone as distinct risk factors for heightened levels of loneliness, anxiety, and depression during the pandemic (Bu et al., 2020; Fancourt et al., 2020; Groarke et al., 2020; Guo et al., 2020). Among students, living alone was associated with worse mental health and higher health anxiety (Essadek & Rabeyron, 2020; Kurcer et al., 2022), whereas living with parents was protective (Cao et al., 2020). People living alone during the pandemic had less physical, socially-distanced, and face-to-face contact (Fancourt et al., 2020; Field et al., 2020; Fingerman et al., 2021), and given the importance of social relationships for mental health and wellbeing (Andersen et al., 2021; Jetten et al., 2017), these findings are not unexpected.

Although crucial for public safety, physical distancing restrictions radically altered patterns of social interaction and the delivery of public services, including higher education. The first case of SARS-CoV-2 was identified in December 2019 in China and by NaN Invalid Date NaN, the World Health Organization declared the crisis a global pandemic. The UK government announced a national lockdown 12 days later, introducing stringent physical distancing restrictions that endured in various forms until NaN Invalid Date NaN. The majority of students in the UK live away from home in student accommodation or private rented accommodation (Hubble & Bolton, 2021). Universities, in compliance with government directives, moved to remote learning in March 2020, and most students returned home to live with parents (Frank & UCAS, 2021). Attempts to resume face-to-face teaching were thwarted by outbreaks of COVID-19 on campuses and subsequent national lockdowns. The combination of remote learning and travel restrictions disrupted students’ living arrangements (Zimmermann et al., 2021). Some students were forced to isolate or found themselves alone in multiple tenancy homes when others chose not to return to campus, while students who already lived alone were less able to access local social networks due to physical distancing restrictions. The influence of COVID-19 containment policies on students’ living arrangements negatively impacted their mental health, as indicated in a previous qualitative study (McGivern & Shepherd, 2022). This is of significant concern as mental health problems negatively impact academic performance and are a major contributing factor in withdrawal from university (Agnafors et al., 2021; Eisenberg et al., 2009; Lipson & Eisenberg, 2018; Meilman et al., 1992).

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions and abrupt move to remote learning, amid an emerging student mental health crisis, warrants further exploration. Against this backdrop, it becomes evident that the unique circumstances of living alone, compounded by the challenges posed by the pandemic, plays a crucial role in shaping the mental health of young adult students. Existing quantitative research has examined young age, student status, and living alone as independent risk factors for psychological maladjustment. However, a critical gap persists in understanding the nexus and combined effects of these vulnerabilities. There is a need to complement this quantitative work with qualitative research which allows for in-depth exploration of complex phenomena (Gough & Lyons, 2016). This qualitative interview study seeks to unravel the interplay of these influences, shedding light on the nuanced subjective experiences of this demographic during a period marked by increased isolation and unique stressors. The current study will explore, for the first time, experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic among young adult university students who lived alone at this time. The significance of this research lies in its potential to inform targeted interventions, support mechanisms, and policy decisions that address the unique needs of this vulnerable demographic.

Methodology

Design

This study explored perspectives of university students who had lived alone during the COVID-19 pandemic within an experiential qualitative framework. Semi-structured interviews were conducted remotely. Reflexive thematic analysis (RTA) was employed, which is appropriate for exploring participants’ lived experiences. Plus, the theoretical flexibility of RTA allows for the use of a critical realist epistemological framework (Braun & Clarke, 2014, 2022). The study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee in the faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences at Queen’s University Belfast (Ref: EPS 21_64).

Epistemology

In the current study, critical realism underpins experiential RTA research focused on reflecting participants’ experiences and perspectives. This approach combines realist ontological and relativist epistemological positions (Maxwell, 2012). According to critical realism, there is an objective reality independent of our thoughts and observations, while at the same time acknowledging that our understanding of this reality is interpreted subjectively such that different people can experience the same phenomena differently. Critical realism allows for centring participants’ lived experiences, while also allowing an understanding of contextual factors influencing their accounts. Consistent with this approach, we view language as a means of conveying and reflecting this subjective experience of reality, of which individuals’ emotions and meanings are considered components (Maxwell, 2012; Sayer, 2000).

Participants and recruitment

Participants were recruited via opportunity sampling. Participants were invited to a study on experiences of living alone during the COVID-19 pandemic, the call for participants was shared on social media. There were no incentives for participating. Inclusion criteria were as follows: (i) aged between 18–24 years, (ii) currently enrolled in an undergraduate or postgraduate programme in the UK, (iii) lived alone for a minimum of 2-weeks between September 2020 and March 2021. Experiencing loneliness was not a criterion for participating. Exclusion criteria were: (i) diagnosis of a mental health condition (ii) self-isolating due to COVID-19 symptoms. Twelve prospective participants contacted the researcher, who provided an information sheet, consent form, and sociodemographic questionnaire to be completed electronically. Ten individuals met the inclusion criteria, nine provided informed consent, and eight were interviewed. No participants withdrew from the study. Eight participants were considered sufficient for obtaining rich insights, following the guiding principle of information power (Malterud et al., 2016) and aligning with Braun and Clarke’s (Braun & Clarke, 2021) view challenging traditional ideas of data saturation as sample size rationales.

As shown in Table 1, participants ranged in age from 19–24 years (M = 21.75, SD = 1.39). Four participants were female and four were male. Three participants were postgraduate students. Seven participants indicated they were White, and one participant indicated that they were of mixed ethnicity. During the pandemic, participants had lived alone for periods of 3 weeks to 9 months. None of the participants had experienced living alone previously, with the exception of one participant who had lived alone for the entire duration of the pandemic and the preceding 5 years.

Table 1. Participant characteristics.

Participant ID	Age	Gender	Ethnicity	Level of Study	Duration of living alone during COVID-19	Previous experience of living alone
1	21	Male	White	Undergraduate	3–4 weeks	No
2	21	Female	White	Undergraduate	1 month	No
3	22	Female	White	Postgraduate	1 month	No
4	22	Female	White	Undergraduate	5 months	No
5	23	Male	White	Postgraduate	Entirety	Yes
6	24	Male	White	Postgraduate	3 weeks	No
7	22	Male	White	Undergraduate	3 weeks	No
8	19	Female	Mixed ethnicity	Undergraduate	9 months	No

Interviews

The critical realist approach acknowledges the active role of the researcher and how social structures influence the conduct of the research and interpretation of the data (Madill et al., 2000). The interviewer (LM) was a female postgraduate student in clinical health psychology with training in interviewing and qualitative data analysis. The participants were unknown to the interviewer or researchers. The interview topic guide was developed by JG and LM to elicit descriptions of participants’ experiences of living alone during the COVID-19 pandemic. The guide provided a flexible framework for the interview, and the interviewer ensured questions were open-ended and not leading to mitigate the interviewer’s implicit assumptions about living alone influencing participant responses. Interviews were conducted remotely by phone (n = 7) or Microsoft Teams (n = 1) between March 1^st and NaN Invalid Date NaN. Remote interviewing has been demonstrated as an appropriate means to collect data during the COVID-19 pandemic (Lobe et al., 2020; Pocock et al., 2021). The interview took place in a private room to ensure confidentiality. Prior to the interview, participants were reminded that their data would be audio recorded and anonymized, of their right to pause the recording, decline to answer a question, or to withdraw from the interview at any stage. The average interview duration was 30 minutes. After the interview, the participant was thanked for their contribution and sent an electronic debrief with relevant COVID-19 information and helplines.

Data analysis

Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. Transcripts were imported to NVivo 12 to organize the data and facilitate analysis. The iterative six-stage reflexive thematic analysis (RTA) process outlined by Braun and Clarke (2006, 2019) was followed. This involved (i) familiarization with the data through repeated readings of the transcripts, (ii) coding units of meaning relevant to the study’s aim, and (iii) organizing the codes into preliminary themes. Consistent with critical realism, the coding and initial theme development was a semantic level analysis (Maxwell, 2012). The first three stages were carried out by JG who adopted an inductive approach allowing the analysis to be guided by the data instead of pre-existing ideas or theories (Azungah, 2018). All members of the research team were involved in the final three stages of RTA, that is, (iv) reviewing themes, (v) defining and naming themes, and (vi) producing the report. The interpretation of the data was influenced by the researchers’ disciplinary training in psychology, and their prior knowledge of the impact of isolation and loneliness and theories of coping with and responding to challenging life experiences. Preliminary themes developed by JG were presented to the research team and refined and reviewed iteratively in conversations between team members. This collaborative orientation to analysis aimed to enhance interpretation and reflexivity.

Findings

Reflexive thematic analysis

Four themes and two subthemes were developed through analysis of the interview transcripts. A graphical representation of the themes, relationships between themes, and illustrative quotes is presented in Figure 1.

Figure 1. Representation of findings from the reflexive thematic analysis.

Experiences of confinement

Participants discussed living alone during the pandemic as a state of involuntary confinement, like feeling trapped and stuck, ‘you are just sitting quite trapped cause there is literally nothing. No one to talk to. No one.’ (P4). Participants were stuck in a routine, ‘I’d wake up in the morning like “no I’m still stuck in this routine of staying at home and being lonely”’ (P2). Participants were also cognitively confined, “you are stuck in your own thoughts more … ‘cause you don’t have anyone to tell your thoughts to” (P3). The experience was mainly appraised as aversive, ‘not something I would like to repeat if I am being honest’ (P6). Participants described having to adjust to the experience of confinement, ‘it was a definite learning curve, a psychological adjustment (laughing) to put it lightly. It was very weird’ (P5). One psychological adjustment discussed by many participants was a behavioural adaptation which they found unsettling; specifically talking out loud to themselves when alone, ‘you’re going around followed by your own shadow, then you’re talking to it and it’s talking back to you … Not that you’re losing your head or anything, but it’s just a weird feeling’ (P6).

Negative feelings are components of the experience

Negative feelings accompanied the experience of confinement, with loneliness a central feature. Participants felt loneliness in response to the sudden realization of their confinement ‘when I was home the loneliness just hit that I can’t find anything else to do, you just can’t’ (P2). Other aversive feelings ranged from ‘boredom’ (P7) to ‘existential malaise’ (P1) and ‘suffering’ (P4). For some participants negative feelings had a gradual onset, ‘did just creep up’ (P6) for others they fluctuated, ‘it came and went to be honest … like it wasn’t like constant loneliness it was more like near the end umm and at the start as well’ (P7), and for some it was progressive, ‘Although 3 weeks doesn’t sound like a massive time probably to a lot of people, for me it was every day going like, “okay, this is actually starting to get really unbearable and uncomfortable”. So probably from the second week it was probably more that anxiety’ (P5).

Perceptions of loss and injustice

In relation to the impact of COVID-19 containment policies more generally, participants discussed loss and longing, ‘because nothing’s really happening except COVID and lockdown, our lives have really stopped’ (P5). Losing out on making memories was a particular loss identified, ‘at 30 looking back and going “at 21 I did that” … that has been taken away from us’ (P2). This loss was compounded by the participants’ younger age. It was viewed as pertinent that ‘we are seen as being in the prime of our life … these are supposed to be like the fun years’ (P3). The experience of living alone at this time was perceived as especially unjust, ‘why am I staying at home? Why did it have to be me?’ (P2). There was also a sentiment expressed that the unique challenges faced by university students had been neglected in the UK government’s COVID response, “uni students have been put last … I feel like the government hasn’t made any effort to, like, reassure university students … they didn’t make it clear, because they said students could come back but also then ‘you should not be moving’… all the information was very contradictory and that is why I kind of feel a lot of students have been put like … we are an afterthought of everything” (P8).

The experience negatively impacted mental health

Respondents discussed experiencing mental health symptoms, such as, anxiety and depressed mood, ‘it was that sort of, feeling a bit, like, depressed’ (P2). Behavioural, emotional, and cognitive characteristics of depression were apparent in the data. Participants spoke about a shift in their energy and activity levels, ‘I find myself laying in a bit, or if I’ve woken up I’ll just stay in bed a bit longer’ (P3). Participants also discussed having lost interest in their studies which was connected with changes in their self-concept, ‘I find myself really disinterested in the Master’s and how it’s going … that is not me, that’s not how I used to work and now I am looking at it going “oh God” so it kinda makes me doubt myself’ (P5). There were also some indications of depersonalization, ‘you can kind of almost lose yourself when you’re trying to just be on your own’ (P6). In this context there were mentions of suicide, although participants distanced themselves from having personally experienced suicidal ideation, ‘I had moments where I, you know, I just feel completely useless, you know? I’d just want oblivion, I wouldn’t say suicidal, but I definitely just wanted to stop, you know?’ (P1). There was an acknowledgement that while the experience of living alone during the pandemic had a significant psychological impact, there were others who had suffered more. There was a feeling that this was not sufficiently emphasized in the public discourse, ‘I been quite lucky that I have never felt that bad, but it’s like, it’s not just COVID that has taken lives, the mental health side of it has, but no one has really spoken out about it until the past year’ (P2).

Social isolation and withdrawal compounded the mental health impact

Participants attributed the behavioural and emotional characteristics of depression noted above to being alone, ‘it’s a difficult thing you know, being on your own and trying to self-motivate’ (P5). Social isolation resulted in a perceived reduction in social skill, ‘you feel as though your social skills have, like, disappeared almost and like, talking to someone and conversation with someone is unusual and not normal and a bit more difficult’ (P7). The long-term impact of social isolation on relationship formation was a source of distress, ‘there has been some kind of anxiety, I suppose, you know, of girlfriends and relationships, you know, because you don’t have that opportunity to meet anyone obviously you have that feeling that you’ll never get to meet anyone’ (P1). Respondents spoke of desiring more social contact, yet paradoxically the situation encouraged social withdrawal. Restrictions on peoples’ social lives meant there was little to talk about in remote or distanced social encounters, ‘I kind of felt like everybody’s almost probably in a similar situation, so everybody kind of probably withdraws naturally, yeah, and there’s not really much to say’ (P6). Some participants unintentionally withdrew because of a dislike of technology-based social activities thereby increasing social isolation and loneliness, ‘that’s probably another layer on why I probably felt more alone … I was probably isolating myself … even further without even realising it’ (P6). Other participants spoke about feeling alienated from those who were not living alone and withdrawing as a result, which had knock-on effects on their mental health, ‘I didn’t mean to, but I sort of distanced myself since I didn’t understand what they were doing because I wasn’t in their situation, there was only so much we could talk about … I’d distanced myself from everyone, there was lot of loneliness and a bit of … I don’t want to say I had it, but it was that sort of feeling of a bit like depressed … It got more like I just want to stay inside … I don’t want to talk to anyone … I was like “it’s too much now I just want to stay and not leave”. All the emotions just went on top of me’ (P2).

Technology-based social connection alleviated the mental health impact

Technology-mediated social connection was considered a lifeline helping participants to feel less alone for which they were grateful, “I would use a lot of social media to, like, to stay in contact with people and I always think about how much we take that for granted ‘cause, like, I constantly can speak to people just to ask a question and stuff, I always just thought, like, ‘I am thankful to have this’” (P7). For some, technology was their only means of social connection, ‘all I had was just social media to keep in touch to the world when I was on my own and just if I had a phone call with the family that was about it … so I was very socially isolated’ (P4). Many participants coped with the experience by seeking social support and affiliation remotely, ‘I tried to, you know, call my friends and call my mum a lot, you know, just every couple of days … Just to sort of know there are other people there dealing with the same kind of problems’ (P1). Participants described staying connected with their social network through technology, such as phone/video calls, social media, YouTube pub quizzes, and Zoom cocktail parties. These kind of virtual get togethers gave participants something to look forward to by emulating their previously busy social lives, ‘zoom almost recreates that. I mean kind of, but it is difficult, but we do kind of use that as way to like, “get me to Friday”, “get me to Wednesday”, you know what I mean, and “I’ll be able to do something”’ (P5). While technology was an important means of social connection, over time it became less attractive, ‘it got to a point where it just became boring with us all just sat there’ and it did not measure up to in-person interactions, ‘I much rather being able to actually see people’ (P7). Participants also highlighted the end of calls as a particular challenge when living alone, ‘I didn’t mind doing zoom it was all fun, but it was more when it ended it was kind of like I’d just sit in the living room or bedroom, like, wherever I was and just be like “oh I am alone, and I am stuck”’ (P2).

Discussion

Younger adults and university students are at increased risk for poor mental health and wellbeing and living alone is a known indicator of isolation and mental health symptoms. This qualitative interview study sought to understand the experiences of young adult students living alone and explore the interaction of these vulnerabilities in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Four themes and two subthemes were developed. Participants’ experiences were predominantly aversive, involving a sense of confinement, negative feelings, and perceptions of loss and injustice. The experience had a significant mental health impact, which was exacerbated by social isolation and withdrawal. Participants identified accessing social support and connection through technology as protective.

In the current study, participants likened their experience of living alone during COVID-19 to being involuntarily confined and trapped. Another qualitative study conducted in the first wave of the UK lockdown found that loneliness was connected to a sense of freedom being constrained (McKenna-Plumley et al., 2021). In discussing their confinement, young adults talked about feeling they were missing out on a key developmental period. Their descriptions had similarities with the social phenomenon FOMO, or fear of missing out. Research has found that students frequently experience FOMO and it is associated with increased negative affect and reduced health behaviour (Hayran & Anik, 2021; Milyavskaya et al., 2018; Riordan et al., 2015). A broader sense of loss in relation to COVID-19 restrictions was also apparent in qualitative studies of 13–24 year olds (McKinlay et al., 2022) and older women living alone (Forward et al., 2022). Given that connection via technology was seen as protective in this study, universities might consider implementing additional online social activities for students living alone to counter feelings of confinement, FOMO, and support mental health in this vulnerable population.

Participants described a range of negative feelings accompanying the experience of confinement. Negative emotional reactions were also documented in studies of people in quarantine (Jiang & Lee, 2023) but also among people not living alone during the pandemic (Moroń & Biolik-Moroń, 2021; Xiang et al., 2020; Zhu et al., 2021). Negative affect decreases and emotion regulation abilities improve with age (Carstensen & Löckenhoff, 2003). A daily diary study found that younger age predicted greater frequency and intensity of negative emotions during the first wave of the pandemic in the US (Carstensen et al., 2020). Emotional reactions to isolation and quarantine were moderated by individual differences (Jiang & Lee, 2023; Moroń & Biolik-Moroń, 2021), and difficulty regulating emotions was found to be a risk factor for both loneliness and depressive symptoms during the first UK lockdown (Groarke et al., 2020, 2021). Therefore, emotion regulation skills training may be a valuable support for young people dealing with isolation.

Loneliness was one aversive emotion resulting from participants’ experience of confinement. This is concerning as loneliness has been linked with increased healthcare utilization and poor mental health and wellbeing among young people and university students (Brett et al., 2022; Christiansen et al., 2021; Loades et al., 2020; McIntyre et al., 2018; Qualter et al., 2010; Wei et al., 2005). At the same time, the mental health impacts described by the participants were much broader than loneliness. Indeed, studies of the general public have reported modest or no increase in loneliness during the pandemic (Bu et al., 2020; Ernst, 2022; Groarke et al., 2021), whereas increases in depression and reductions in quality of life were comparatively large (Zaninotto et al., 2022). In the current study participants described a variety of specific mental health symptoms, such as, stress, anxiety, and depression. This corresponds with an extensive body of quantitative research documenting the mental health impact of the pandemic on young adult and student populations (Bu et al., 2020; Cao et al., 2020; Essadek & Rabeyron, 2020; Firkey et al., 2021; Kohls et al., 2021).

In contrast to loneliness which is defined as a negative emotion arising from the perception that one’s social contacts are somehow insufficient (Perlman & Peplau, 1981), social isolation is the more objective experience of having few social connections or infrequent social contact (Holt‐Lunstad, 2021). The two experiences are conceptually related but do not always co-occur (Menec et al., 2020). In the current study, young adult students described the objective isolation inherent to living alone amid physical distancing restrictions as a major contributor to the mental health impacts of the experience. Findings align with models of wellbeing emphasizing social relationships (Andersen et al., 2021; Jetten et al., 2017), and empirical evidence identifying a lack of social support as a major risk factor for poor mental health outcomes in young adulthood (Newcomb-Anjo et al., 2017) and among students (Jackman et al., 2023). Their perspectives are also consistent with the social support stress-buffering hypothesis (Cohen & Wills, 1985). During the COVID-19 pandemic, social support moderated the relationship between loneliness and anxiety (Xu et al., 2020), between COVID-19 news exposure and stress (Rui & Guo, 2022), and buffered the association between COVID-19 worry and mental health among college students (Szkody et al., 2021). Social support interventions targeting students living alone may be particularly important for the mental health and wellbeing of this at-risk population.

Participants elucidated some potential mechanisms explaining how isolation exacerbated the mental health impacts of living alone during the COVID-19 pandemic. Although isolation was perceived as unjust and aversive, it was reinforcing in the sense that over time social isolation led participants to withdraw further because of a perceived loss of social skill and feeling alienated from people not living alone. Experiences of alienation in relationships is a risk factor for distress in young adulthood (Osman & Miranda, 2022; Raudino et al., 2013) and the use of avoidance coping strategies (such as withdrawal) has been associated with greater distress and reduced wellbeing during COVID-19 (Dawson & Golijani-Moghaddam, 2020). The findings suggest that young people may need specific supports focused on reintegrating following extended periods of isolation. A meta-analysis of interventions for loneliness in young people reported that those focused on developing social and emotional skills had the largest effects (Eccles & Qualter, 2021). Participants also discussed isolation as a cause of lost motivation and interest in their studies, which existing research has linked to remote learning (Shin & Hickey, 2021). Correspondently, a sense of belonging has been linked to greater academic motivation and retention (Pedler et al., 2022). Going forward, countering isolation by fostering a sense of connection, shared identity, and belonging at university will be important for students’ mental health and educational attainment.

Participants identified technology as a highly valued resource for maintaining social connections while living alone during the pandemic. Despite associations between social media use and FOMO, evaluative stress, and distress (Elhai et al., 2017; Keles et al., 2020; Wolniewicz et al., 2018), the relationship between technology and mental health may be more nuanced than previously suggested. Indeed, the negative association between social media use and mental health among adolescents has been largely explained by exposure to cyber-bullying and decrements in health behaviour (Viner et al., 2019). University students in Finland perceived social media as a means of increasing social capital (Uusiautti & Määttä, 2014) and a recent study of Chinese students found that receiving more feedback on and interaction with social media posts predicted lower loneliness and higher social connectedness (Sun et al., 2023). Among UK university students digital confidence predicted loneliness and wellbeing during COVID-19 (Dinu et al., 2022), and the inverse relationship between loneliness and use of adaptive coping strategies was mediated by online social connection (Moore & March, 2022). Systematic reviews have concluded that technology-based interventions hold significant promise for addressing loneliness and isolation (Sarwar Shah et al., 2019; Williams et al., 2021, 2022) and mental health among university students (Farrer et al., 2013).

Limitations

A number of limitations relate to the use of opportunity sampling. Gender representation was balanced; however, the sample was homogenous with respect to ethnicity. Further, demographic factors which have been found to influence the impact of COVID-19 restrictions such as ethnicity, disability, health, and socio-economic status (Bu et al., 2020; Iob et al., 2020; Wright et al., 2020) were not examined. Generalizability is not the goal of qualitative research, nevertheless, the perspectives of more diverse populations are under-represented in the current study. Future studies should explore the experiences of younger adults living alone who are marginalized, who may have been more impacted by the pandemic. The reliance on telephone interviews, while chosen for practical advantages of collecting data during varying COVID-19 restrictions and for participant preference, may limit the capture of non-verbal cues and visual context, potentially affecting the depth of data collected (Johnson et al., 2021). Participants’ retrospective accounts were gathered at a period of change in restrictions. Therefore, this study does not explore whether experiences were differentially impacted by the introduction or relaxation of specific restrictions (e.g. lockdown) or by different waves of the pandemic. That being said, longitudinal research has found stability of loneliness and mental health symptoms during the pandemic, despite significant changes in disease-containment policies (Bu et al., 2020; Fancourt et al., 2020; Groarke et al., 2021; Luchetti et al., 2020; Wang et al., 2020).

Conclusion

Young adult university students experienced living alone during the COVID-19 as confinement. The experience had a significant impact on their mental health, which was compounded by isolation and social withdrawal and alleviated by technology-mediated social connection. These findings can be used to inform the design of psychological interventions to deal with public health emergencies which limit social contact (e.g. pandemics, natural disasters). Younger adults living alone should be prioritized for provision of supports. In addition to addressing loneliness and mental health symptoms directly, improving social and emotional skills, increasing social support, reducing social isolation, and preventing social withdrawal should be targets for interventions. The feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness of internet-based social activities and/or social facilitation software as modes of delivery for intervention content should also be examined. The findings highlight the need for early interventions that address isolation to prevent the development of severe mental illness in university students. The prevalence of psychological disorders is high and growing among student populations (Royal College of Psychiatrists, 2011; Stallman, 2010). Although studies show that the vast majority of disorders have onsets prior to the transition to university (Auerbach et al., 2016), addressing isolation, loneliness, and mental health concerns among students should be a priority for university administrators given the negative impact of mental ill health on student attainment and retention (Agnafors et al., 2021; Eisenberg et al., 2009; Lipson & Eisenberg, 2018; Meilman et al., 1992).

Author contribution statement

JG: Conceptualization, Methodology, Investigation, Formal analysis, Resources, Writing – Original Draft, Writing – Review & Editing, Visualization, Supervision LM: Conceptualization, Methodology, Investigation, Writing – Review & Editing, Project administration PMP: Methodology, Investigation, Writing – Review & Editing LGW: Methodology, Investigation, Writing – Review & Editing.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the participants in this study. The data was collected at Queen’s University Belfast, School of Psychology, Belfast, Northern Ireland and the research was completed at University of Galway, School of Psychology, Galway, Ireland.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Data availability statement

The authors confirm that the data supporting the findings of this study are available within the article.References

Additional information

Funding

This research received no specific grant from any funding agency, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.