Loneliness and social skills of male college students

Abstract

Evidence has suggested that there are behavioral differences between lonely and non-lonely people. The present study investigated the social behavior of lonely and non-lonely males in a naturalistic setting with a same sex stranger. It was hypothesized that lonely subjects would demonstrate less interest in their partners and be more anxious, hostile and depressed than non-lonely subjects. It was also hypothesized that the type of dyad subjects participated in would influence interpersonal behavior. -- Subjects were 56 male undergraduate students (mean age = 18.68). Subjects were paired in three kinds of dyads. Ten pairs were in dyads consisting of two lonely people; 10 pairs were in dyads of two non-lonely people and eight pairs were in a mixed dyad. Loneliness was categorized according to subjects' scores on the UCLA Loneliness Scale. -- Results showed that lonely subjects rated their partner's as more anxious than non-lonely subjects did (p < .05). Results also showed that the type of dyad did not affect the interaction. There were no other differences between lonely and non-lonely individuals. The results of the present study are discussed in light of methodological differences between the present and other studies and sex differences. --