The association between feelings of loneliness and the number of social relationships in depression: a cross-sectional study of German adults

BACKGROUND: Depression is a common psychiatric disorder that is associated with both feelings of loneliness and withdrawal from social relationships. However, clinical experience suggests that feelings of loneliness are an integral part of depressive symptomatology and can occur even when a patient has many social relationships. We addressed the following three research questions: 1. How are feelings of loneliness and the number of social relationships associated in people with depression compared with the nondepressed population? 2. Do people with depression have more feelings of loneliness compared with the nondepressed population? 3. Do people with depression have fewer social relationships compared with the nondepressed population? METHODS: Cross-sectional data from the German Depression Barometer 2023, a representative survey of the German adult population (N=5196), were analysed. Feelings of loneliness and the number of social relationships were assessed via self-reports. RESULTS: Feelings of loneliness and the number of social relationships are negatively correlated both in people with a lifetime diagnosis of depression (n=1221, Spearman's ρ = -.234, p