The Lonely States of America: Prevalence and Demographic Risk Factors for Affection Deprivation among U.S. Adults

Abstract

Affection deprivation indexes a deficit in the amount of affectionate communication one receives from others. According to affection exchange theory, affection deprivation is detrimental to physical and relational health, and empirical evidence supports that assertion. Little is known, however, about the prevalence of affection deprivation in the United States, a topic addressed here in two studies. The first study (N = 2,616) examined demographic and geographic variation in affection deprivation among a non-representative sample of U.S. adults. The latter study (N = 1,121) used a Census-matched representative sample of U.S. adults to replicate assessments of prevalence and examine how affection deprivation relates to loneliness and physical pain.