A Short-Form Measure of Loneliness

TLDR

The UCLA Loneliness Scale (ULS‑20) and its four‑item short form (ULS‑4) are widely used in personality research. An exploratory factor analysis of the ULS‑20 identified eight core items that loaded strongly on the first factor, which were then combined to create a new eight‑item short form, the ULS‑8. The ULS‑8 proved reliable, valid, and a superior substitute for the ULS‑20 compared to the ULS‑4, and all loneliness measures were strongly linked to socially undesirable personality traits but showed no association with six health‑related behaviors.

Abstract

Abstract The revised UCLA Loneliness Scale (ULS-20) and a four-item short form (ULS-4) are widely used in personality research (Russell, Peplau, & Cutrona, 1980). In an exploratory factor analysis of the ULS-20, we identified eight items that loaded substantially on the first factor. These items were combined to form an alternative short-form measure, the ULS-8. The results of this study indicate that the ULS-8 is reliable, valid, and a better substitute for the ULS-20 than is the ULS-4. Consistent with the previous research, the loneliness measures (ULS-20, ULS-8, ULS-4) were strongly related to socially undesirable personality characteristics, but loneliness was uncorrelated with the six different health-related behaviors (exercise, meal regularity, alcohol use, hard drug use, smoking, and hours of sleep) assessed in this study.