While transient and situational feelings of loneliness are usually attributed an
adaptive function, persistent feelings of loneliness are associated with high levels
of distress and a variety of psychological and somatic complaints. Persistent
feelings of loneliness play a central role in the development and/or maintenance
of various mental disorders. This book sensitizes professionals to the topic of loneliness, summarizes the current state of the phenomenology and prevalence of loneliness, and identifies various risk factors for the development and maintenance of loneliness. In addition, empirical associations of loneliness with psychological and somatic
disorders and clinical phenomena such as suicidality are reported. The book
presents various explanatory models and describes specific intervention options
based on them. These are intended to support professionals in dealing
with loneliness in therapy and to enable a therapy tailored to the individual circumstances of a person. 

Target group: For:
• medical and psychological
psychotherapists
• specialists working in psychiatry,
psychotherapy, or psychosomatic
medicine
• clinical psychologists
• general practitioners
• students and teachers in psychotherapeutic
training, further
training, and continuing education