Loneliness in Our Time
Multidisciplinary Perspectives
Published on 14. May 2026
Book
Hardback
376 pages
978-1-350-49301-8 (ISBN)
Description
This open access volume is an interdisciplinary anthology on loneliness that brings together for the first time a variety of disciplines to provide a comprehensive overview of research into a defining condition of our age.
Loneliness is currently a widely debated topic in intellectual and public discourse that is occasionally, though controversially, seen to be an important public health hazard and that is often, and also controversially, said to be a marker of our digital and post-pandemic age. The volume brings together the contributions from leading researchers in philosophy, literature, psychology, cognitive science, history, anthropology, health science and business studies. Despite the wide scope of topics and differences in methodology, the contributors all investigate, in various forms, conceptual and empirical questions as they arise in the attempt to understand what loneliness is and whether we should think of it as the signifier of our time. The collection brings together chapters that investigate loneliness from a conceptual standpoint such as philosophy, psychoanalysis, or literature. They prepare the ground for a second section in which loneliness is investigated as it manifests itself in old age and at the end of life, as posing crucial problems for contemporary society. The contributions to the third section then research concrete manifestations of loneliness, such as loneliness amongst asylum seekers, in the workplace, and during the Covid-19 pandemic. Together these chapters offer a unique portrait of loneliness in our time that presents this hotly debated phenomenon in a multi-faceted, novel, and nuanced way.
The ebook editions of this book are available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence on bloomsburycollections.com. Open access was funded by the University of Exeter, Maynooth University, UCLA and Bentley University.
Loneliness is currently a widely debated topic in intellectual and public discourse that is occasionally, though controversially, seen to be an important public health hazard and that is often, and also controversially, said to be a marker of our digital and post-pandemic age. The volume brings together the contributions from leading researchers in philosophy, literature, psychology, cognitive science, history, anthropology, health science and business studies. Despite the wide scope of topics and differences in methodology, the contributors all investigate, in various forms, conceptual and empirical questions as they arise in the attempt to understand what loneliness is and whether we should think of it as the signifier of our time. The collection brings together chapters that investigate loneliness from a conceptual standpoint such as philosophy, psychoanalysis, or literature. They prepare the ground for a second section in which loneliness is investigated as it manifests itself in old age and at the end of life, as posing crucial problems for contemporary society. The contributions to the third section then research concrete manifestations of loneliness, such as loneliness amongst asylum seekers, in the workplace, and during the Covid-19 pandemic. Together these chapters offer a unique portrait of loneliness in our time that presents this hotly debated phenomenon in a multi-faceted, novel, and nuanced way.
The ebook editions of this book are available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence on bloomsburycollections.com. Open access was funded by the University of Exeter, Maynooth University, UCLA and Bentley University.
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Target group
Professional and scholarly
College/higher education
Illustrations
10 bw illus
Dimensions
Height: 240 mm
Width: 161 mm
Thickness: 25 mm
Weight
722 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-350-49301-8 (9781350493018)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
Axel Seemann is Professor and Chair in the Department of Philosophy at Bentley University, USA. His work is mainly in the philosophy of mind, with a particular focus on its social dimension. He has published several papers as well as co-edited a special issue for the interdisciplinary philosophy journal Topoi on the topic of loneliness.
Joel Krueger is Associate Professor in Philosophy at the University of Exeter, UK.
Tom Roberts is Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of Exeter, UK.
Emily Hughes is Postdoctoral Researcher in Philosophy at the University of York, UK.
Joel Krueger is Associate Professor in Philosophy at the University of Exeter, UK.
Tom Roberts is Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of Exeter, UK.
Emily Hughes is Postdoctoral Researcher in Philosophy at the University of York, UK.
Content
Introduction: Loneliness in Our Time, Axel Seemann (Bentley University, USA), Joel Krueger (University of Exeter, UK), Tom Roberts (University of Exeter, UK) and Emily Hughes (University of York, UK)
Part I: Loneliness, Experience, and Meaning
1. Loneliness: A Phenomenological Anthropological Perspective, Jason Throop (UCLA, USA)
2. Loneliness and the Epistemology of Meaningful Social Connections, Axel Seemann (Bentley University, USA)
3. Loneliness and Self-Estrangement: Insights from Depth Psychology and Cognitive Science, Jon Ericson (Bentley University, USA)
4. Choosing Loneliness: Anxiety and Self-Alienation, Samir Dayal (Bentley University, USA)
5. Loneliness and the 'Double-Empathy Problem' in Autism, Emily Hughes (University of York, UK)
Part II: Loneliness, OId Age, and End of Life
6. Defining Loneliness for Older Adults: A Multi-study Synthesis, Joanna McHugh Power (Maynooth University, Ireland)
7. Loneliness at the End of Life, Glenys Caswell (independent researcher)
8. "I Don't Need a Friend, I Need Someone to Die With", Zohar Lederman (University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong)
9. Loneliness and Relating to the Dead, Becky Millar (University of Cardiff, UK)
Part III: Loneliness and the Challenges of the Present
10. Against the Present: Historicising Loneliness in an Epidemic Age, Fred Cooper (University of Exeter, UK)
11. Social Rights, Loneliness, and Choice, Aaron Ancell (Bentley University, USA)
12. Loneliness and Vaccine Intentions and Uptake in COVID-19: Results from a 3-Wave Nationally Representative Panel Survey, Danielle Blanch-Hartigan, Robert DeLeo, & Risk and Social Policy Working Group (Bentley University, USA)
13. Workplace Relationships as Potential Antidotes to Loneliness, Elana Feldman and Sarah Kostanski (University of Massachusetts Lowell, USA)
14.Digital Spaces of Loneliness and Intimacy, Lucy Osler (University of Cardiff, UK), Tom Roberts (University of Exeter, UK) and Joel Krueger (University of Exeter, UK)
15. Loneliness Experiences of the Refugee and/or Asylum Seeker, Linda Finlay (York St John University, UK)
Part I: Loneliness, Experience, and Meaning
1. Loneliness: A Phenomenological Anthropological Perspective, Jason Throop (UCLA, USA)
2. Loneliness and the Epistemology of Meaningful Social Connections, Axel Seemann (Bentley University, USA)
3. Loneliness and Self-Estrangement: Insights from Depth Psychology and Cognitive Science, Jon Ericson (Bentley University, USA)
4. Choosing Loneliness: Anxiety and Self-Alienation, Samir Dayal (Bentley University, USA)
5. Loneliness and the 'Double-Empathy Problem' in Autism, Emily Hughes (University of York, UK)
Part II: Loneliness, OId Age, and End of Life
6. Defining Loneliness for Older Adults: A Multi-study Synthesis, Joanna McHugh Power (Maynooth University, Ireland)
7. Loneliness at the End of Life, Glenys Caswell (independent researcher)
8. "I Don't Need a Friend, I Need Someone to Die With", Zohar Lederman (University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong)
9. Loneliness and Relating to the Dead, Becky Millar (University of Cardiff, UK)
Part III: Loneliness and the Challenges of the Present
10. Against the Present: Historicising Loneliness in an Epidemic Age, Fred Cooper (University of Exeter, UK)
11. Social Rights, Loneliness, and Choice, Aaron Ancell (Bentley University, USA)
12. Loneliness and Vaccine Intentions and Uptake in COVID-19: Results from a 3-Wave Nationally Representative Panel Survey, Danielle Blanch-Hartigan, Robert DeLeo, & Risk and Social Policy Working Group (Bentley University, USA)
13. Workplace Relationships as Potential Antidotes to Loneliness, Elana Feldman and Sarah Kostanski (University of Massachusetts Lowell, USA)
14.Digital Spaces of Loneliness and Intimacy, Lucy Osler (University of Cardiff, UK), Tom Roberts (University of Exeter, UK) and Joel Krueger (University of Exeter, UK)
15. Loneliness Experiences of the Refugee and/or Asylum Seeker, Linda Finlay (York St John University, UK)