Connections and loneliness among nursing home residents
Social Connectedness and Social Isolation in Nursing Home Residents
This project looks at how people in nursing homes form connections and how loneliness spreads, especially for residents with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Univ of Massachusetts Med Sch Worcester NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Worcester, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11045004 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
From a resident's point of view, researchers will follow nursing home residents over time to track social contacts, feelings of loneliness, and related health outcomes. They will combine observations, staff reports, resident interviews or proxy reports, and medical records to map how social isolation and connectedness change during a nursing home stay. The team will examine whether loneliness spreads between residents in congregate living and identify individual and facility factors that make residents more or less likely to become isolated. The study will also use the COVID-19 period as a natural example of extreme social disruption to understand long-term effects and inform ways to keep residents connected.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are adults living in participating nursing homes, particularly those with Alzheimer’s disease or related dementias.
Not a fit: People who live at home, in non-nursing-home settings, or who are not part of the enrolled facilities are unlikely to benefit directly from this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could guide programs and policies that reduce loneliness and improve well-being for nursing home residents with dementia.
How similar studies have performed: Community research shows loneliness can spread and that social interventions can help, but studying how these patterns work inside nursing homes and among residents with dementia is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
Worcester, United States
- Univ of Massachusetts Med Sch Worcester — Worcester, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Lapane, Kate L — Univ of Massachusetts Med Sch Worcester
- Study coordinator: Lapane, Kate L
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.