Predictors of Loneliness among Homeless Individuals in Germany during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Sample
2.2. Dependent Variable
2.3. Independent Variables
2.4. Statistical Analysis
3. Results
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Supplementary Materials
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
References
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n | Loneliness Total Sample | p-Value | Men n | Loneliness Men | p-Value | Women n | Loneliness Women | p-Value | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Overall | 265 | 41.7% | 211 | 40.7% | 54 | 47.8% | |||
Age (years) | 0.85 | 0.78 | 0.35 | ||||||
18–29 | 33 | 39.3% | 29 | 42.7% | 4 | 25.0% | |||
30–39 | 64 | 39.8% | 48 | 37.2% | 16 | 51.6% | |||
40–49 | 72 | 45.6% | 56 | 44.8% | 16 | 50.0% | |||
50–59 | 60 | 40.5% | 47 | 37.3% | 13 | 48.2% | |||
>60 | 23 | 39.7% | 19 | 40.4% | 4 | 66.7% | |||
Marital status | 0.24 | 0.09 | 0.60 | ||||||
married | 7 | 26.9% | 5 | 23.8% | 2 | 40.0% | |||
married, living apart | 20 | 44.4% | 15 | 42.9% | 5 | 50.0% | |||
single | 180 | 43.8% | 156 | 44.1% | 24 | 44.4% | |||
widowed | 8 | 47.1% | 2 | 22.2% | 6 | 75.0% | |||
divorced | 39 | 34.8% | 26 | 31.3% | 13 | 46.4% | |||
Children | 0.28 | 0.18 | 0.80 | ||||||
no | 143 | 43.6% | 122 | 43.1% | 21 | 48.8% | |||
yes | 115 | 39.1% | 83 | 37.2% | 32 | 46.4% | |||
Level of education | 0.91 | 0.64 | 0.57 | ||||||
no school education | 43 | 39.4% | 31 | 37.4% | 12 | 48.0% | |||
school education | 116 | 41.4% | 95 | 41.7% | 21 | 41.2% | |||
vocational education | 76 | 43.4% | 64 | 42.7% | 12 | 50.0% | |||
higher tertiary education | 18 | 39.1% | 11 | 35.4% | 7 | 63.6% | |||
Home country | <0.01 | < 0.05 | 0.25 | ||||||
other than Germany | 108 | 36.2% | 91 | 35.7% | 16 | 40.0% | |||
Germany | 151 | 47.0% | 114 | 46.3% | 37 | 51.4% | |||
Duration of homelessness (months) | <0.01 | 0.14 | <0.05 | ||||||
1 month | 28 | 57.1% | 19 | 51.4% | 9 | 75.0% | |||
2–12 months | 79 | 35.0% | 66 | 36.3% | 13 | 31.0% | |||
>13 months | 147 | 45.0% | 117 | 43.5% | 30 | 53.6% | |||
Having a pet | 0.27 | 0.43 | 0.32 | ||||||
no | 238 | 42.0% | 191 | 41.1% | 47 | 48.5% | |||
yes | 17 | 34.0% | 13 | 34.2% | 4 | 33.3% | |||
Alcohol consumption | <0.05 | 0.07 | 0.10 | ||||||
never | 82 | 39.2% | 60 | 37.3% | 22 | 46.8% | |||
once or twice a year | 32 | 47.8% | 26 | 50.0% | 6 | 42.9% | |||
monthly | 37 | 44.6% | 27 | 41.5% | 9 | 56.3% | |||
weekly | 20 | 25.6% | 18 | 29.5% | 2 | 15.4% | |||
daily | 86 | 46.7% | 73 | 44.8% | 13 | 61.9% | |||
Illegal drugs | 0.44 | 0.36 | 0.97 | ||||||
never | 143 | 38.9% | 111 | 37.5% | 31 | 47.7% | |||
once or twice a year | 12 | 54.5% | 11 | 55.0% | 1 | 50.0% | |||
monthly | 20 | 40.0% | 18 | 40.9% | 2 | 33.3% | |||
weekly | 21 | 45.7% | 17 | 43.6% | 3 | 50.0% | |||
daily | 62 | 45.6% | 48 | 45.7% | 14 | 46.7% | |||
Mental health concerns | <0.001 | <0.01 | <0.01 | ||||||
no | 178 | 36.9% | 148 | 36.9% | 28 | 37.8% | |||
yes | 81 | 56.3% | 56 | 53.3% | 25 | 65.8% | |||
Concerns about COVID-19 | 1.7 (1.0) | <0.001 | 1.6 (1.0) | <0.01 | 1.8 (1.1) |
Loneliness | ||
---|---|---|
Variables | Men | Women |
Age group (reference group: 18 to 29 years) | ||
>30–39 years | 0.55 | 9.02 |
(0.27–1.15) | (0.32–253.29) | |
>40–49 years | 0.95 | 37.43 * |
(0.46–1.98) | (1.58–885.63) | |
>50–59 years | 0.82 | 3.00 |
(0.38–1.78) | (0.14–65.61) | |
>60 years | 0.77 | 0.76 |
(0.30–1.98) | (0.01–59.20) | |
Marital status (reference group: married) | ||
married, living apart | 1.56 | 6.03 |
(0.36–6.87) | (0.11–342.87) | |
single | 1.66 | 1.47 |
(0.45–6.07) | (0.04–61.21) | |
widowed | 0.34 | 20.53 |
(0.04–2.70) | (0.25–1667.98) | |
divorced | 1.27 | 1.04 |
(0.32–5.03) | (0.02–43.41) | |
Having children | 1.00 | 1.89 |
(reference group: not having children) Education (reference group: no school education) | (0.63–1.61) | (0.34–10.35) |
school education | 1.10 | 0.30 |
(0.59–2.08) | (0.05–1.77) | |
vocational education | 1.33 | 1.13 |
(0.68–2.61) | (0.16–7.80) | |
higher tertiary education | 0.97 | 1.35 |
Country of origin | (0.36–2.61) | (0.10–19.19) |
(reference group: other than Germany) Duration of homelessness (reference group: up to 1 month) | 1.06 (0.67–1.67) | 8.57 * (1.11–66.52) |
>2–12 months | 0.38 * | 0.02 ** |
(0.16–0.91) | (0.00–0.26) | |
>12 months | 0.52 | 0.07 * |
(0.22–1.23) | (0.01–0.87) | |
Pets | 0.50 | 0.09 + |
(reference group: having no pets) | (0.20–1.22) | (0.01–1.56) |
Alcohol consumption (reference group: no alcohol consumption) | ||
once or twice a year | 1.52 | 1.80 |
(0.70–3.27) | (0.23–13.95) | |
monthly | 0.94 | 6.66 |
(0.46–1.93) | (0.58–76.60) | |
weekly | 0.64 | 0.04 ** |
(0.30–1.36) | (0.00–0.40) | |
daily | 1.27 | 0.66 |
Consumption of illegal drugs (reference group: no illegal drug use) | (0.74–2.20) | (0.09–4.87) |
once or twice a year | 2.53 | - |
(0.78–8.23) | - | |
monthly | 1.28 | 0.61 |
(0.59–2.79) | (0.01–25.47) | |
weekly | 1.04 | 0.22 |
daily | (0.45–2.40) 1.08 (0.61–1.93) | (0.01–6.56) 0.26 (0.03–2.11) |
Mental health concerns | 1.59 + | 5.89 * |
(reference group: absence of mental health problems) | (0.95–2.65) | (1.31–26.39) |
Concerns about COVID-19 | 1.34 * (1.06–1.70) | 1.44 (0.71–2.92) |
Constant | 0.64 | 0.04 |
(0.08–5.37) | (0.00–34.17) | |
Observations | 405 | 91 |
(McFadden’s) Pseudo R² | 0.06 | 0.40 |
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Dost, K.; Heinrich, F.; Graf, W.; Brennecke, A.; Kowalski, V.; Leider, A.; Kraus, A.; van Rüth, V.; Ondruschka, B.; Püschel, K.; et al. Predictors of Loneliness among Homeless Individuals in Germany during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19, 12718. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191912718
Dost K, Heinrich F, Graf W, Brennecke A, Kowalski V, Leider A, Kraus A, van Rüth V, Ondruschka B, Püschel K, et al. Predictors of Loneliness among Homeless Individuals in Germany during the COVID-19 Pandemic. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022; 19(19):12718. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191912718
Chicago/Turabian StyleDost, Katharina, Fabian Heinrich, Wiebke Graf, Anna Brennecke, Veronika Kowalski, Anna Leider, Anika Kraus, Victoria van Rüth, Benjamin Ondruschka, Klaus Püschel, and et al. 2022. "Predictors of Loneliness among Homeless Individuals in Germany during the COVID-19 Pandemic" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 19, no. 19: 12718. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191912718