Adolescent loneliness and later-life depressive symptoms: The intersecting roles of gender and socioeconomic status

Rationale

Adolescent loneliness has emerged as a pressing public health issue in many developed countries, drawing increasing attention for its potential long-term psychological consequences.

Objective

This study examines the association between adolescent loneliness and depressive symptoms in adulthood and explores how gender and socioeconomic factors, such as college attainment and personal earnings, moderate this relationship.

Methods

Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, this study employs sibling fixed effects models to account for unobserved family-level confounding factors. Gender-stratified models and two- and three-way interaction models are used to investigate how gender and socioeconomic factors shape the relationship between adolescent loneliness and adult depressive symptoms.

Results

The positive association between adolescent loneliness and depressive symptoms remains significant after accounting for individual- and familial-level covariates, including sibling fixed effects (b = 0.988, p < 0.001). This suggests that the relationship persists independently of unobserved family background characteristics. Gender-specific analyses indicate that college attainment significantly moderates this association for women, but not for men. A three-way interaction between loneliness, college attainment, and gender (b = −1.327, p < 0.05) further supports the gendered moderating role of education. In contrast, personal earnings do not moderate the relationship in either gender.

Conclusion

The findings of this study highlight the potential long-term psychological consequences of adolescent loneliness and the importance of interventions across the lifespan. Efforts to support women with lower levels of education may be particularly important in mitigating the heightened psychological effects of loneliness and reducing mental health disparities.