{"id":3121,"date":"2026-03-16T12:43:37","date_gmt":"2026-03-16T11:43:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ub.edu\/school-sociology\/?p=3121"},"modified":"2026-03-16T12:43:37","modified_gmt":"2026-03-16T11:43:37","slug":"workplace-and-non-workplace-loneliness-among-employees-in-spain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ub.edu\/school-sociology\/workplace-and-non-workplace-loneliness-among-employees-in-spain\/","title":{"rendered":"Workplace and non-workplace loneliness among employees in Spain"},"content":{"rendered":"\"\"Loneliness is increasingly recognised as a major public health concern, but how does it manifest inside and outside the workplace? And do these different forms of loneliness affect employees\u2019 mental health and work outcomes in the same way? These questions are particularly relevant in contemporary labour markets shaped by stress, precariousness and changing work arrangements.<\/p>\n

In the study \u201cWorkplace and non-workplace loneliness: a cross-sectional comparative study on risk factors and impacts on absenteeism and mental health among employees in Spain\u201d, our researchers Joan Dom\u00e8nech-Abella and Jordi Mund\u00f3, alongside with Josep Maria Haro (Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de D\u00e9u) and\u00a0 Carles Muntaner (University of Toronto) examine the prevalence, risk factors and consequences of loneliness among employees living in Spain, distinguishing between loneliness experienced at work and outside the workplace.<\/p>\n

Using survey data from 5,400 employed individuals collected in 2024, the study reveals that loneliness is highly prevalent in both contexts. About 40.7% of workers report experiencing workplace loneliness, while 42.0% report non-workplace loneliness. Despite these similar levels, the overlap between the two is limited, indicating that workplace and non-workplace loneliness are related but distinct experiences.<\/p>\n

The analysis shows that younger and immigrant workers are more likely to experience loneliness in both contexts. However, important differences also emerge. Sociodemographic factors such as being female, unmarried or non-heterosexual are exclusively associated with non-workplace loneliness, while working conditions are a key driver in both cases, playing a more prominent role in workplace loneliness.<\/p>\n

High levels of work-related stress and labour precariousnessare consistently associated with higher probabilities of loneliness. As job precariousness increases, the likelihood of experiencing loneliness rises sharply, highlighting the close connection between employment conditions and social well-being.<\/p>\n

Crucially, both workplace and non-workplace loneliness have independent and significant effects on important outcomes. Employees experiencing loneliness show higher odds of absenteeism, as well as increased symptoms of depression, anxiety and substance use disorder. These associations remain robust even when both types of loneliness are considered simultaneously.<\/p>\n

Overall, the findings suggest that loneliness among employees cannot be understood solely as an individual or social issue outside work. Many of its determinants are rooted in the work environment itself. The study underscores the importance of improving working conditions and reducing labour precariousness as part of broader strategies to address loneliness, improve mental health and reduce absenteeism among workers.<\/p>\n

Discover more about the UB School of Sociology\u2019s research! Explore the <\/strong>full list of our researchers<\/strong><\/a> and their latest research <\/strong>here<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Loneliness is increasingly recognised as a major public health concern, but how does it manifest inside and outside the workplace? And do these different forms of loneliness affect employees\u2019 mental…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3122,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[19],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ub.edu\/school-sociology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3121"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ub.edu\/school-sociology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ub.edu\/school-sociology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ub.edu\/school-sociology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ub.edu\/school-sociology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3121"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.ub.edu\/school-sociology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3121\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3123,"href":"https:\/\/www.ub.edu\/school-sociology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3121\/revisions\/3123"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ub.edu\/school-sociology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3122"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ub.edu\/school-sociology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3121"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ub.edu\/school-sociology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3121"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ub.edu\/school-sociology\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3121"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}