State Loneliness

What it measures

Measures how lonely a person feels at a given point in time, including a social comparison dimension that asks respondents to rate their loneliness relative to others. Items use direct self-report of current felt loneliness rather than behavioural or social network indicators. Adapted from the NYU Loneliness Scale developed by Rubenstein and Shaver (1982). Validated in a pretest (n=116) and Study 3 (n=88) within research on cold visual imagery and charitable giving, with excellent reliability in both contexts (α=.92).

Response format

7-point scale (1=not at all, 7=very much)

Scale items

• How lonely are you feeling?
• Compared to other people, how lonely do you think you are?
• To what extent do you feel lonely right now?

Full scale items shown. Always cite the original source when using this scale in research.

Usage notes & scoring

Adapted from Rubenstein & Shaver (1982) NYU Loneliness Scale, as compiled in Robinson, Shaver, & Wrightsman (1991). Momentary framing ('right now') distinguishes this from trait loneliness measures. Items use a frequency/intensity scale rather than agreement scale.

Recommended companion scales

Citation

Choi, J., Rangan, P., & Singh, S.N. (2016). Do cold images cause cold-heartedness? The impact of visual stimuli on the effectiveness of negative emotional charity appeals. Journal of Advertising, 45(4), 417–426.

Keywords