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Hong Kong study finds volunteer work reduced loneliness in elderly people during coronavirus crisis
- Older residents supported by peers had lower levels of depression and anxiety, joint university study finds
- Researchers urge government and social welfare organisations to use peer mutual support systems in future health crises
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A Hong Kong joint university study has found taking on voluntary work helped to reduce loneliness among elderly people during the coronavirus pandemic and that older residents supported by their peers had lower levels of depression and anxiety.
Researchers from the Education University (EdU) and City University (CityU) on Wednesday said the research showed that volunteering was beneficial for those who gave the support and the people they cared for. They urged the government and social welfare organisations to use peer mutual support systems in future health crises.
“Loneliness is a serious problem,” Professor Chou Kee-lee from EdU’s department of social sciences and policy studies said. “Our study was to find a way to reduce the elderly’s feelings of loneliness.”
The study asked more than 1,500 older people to evaluate how psychological interventions eased feelings of loneliness among the elderly and boosted their well-being during the coronavirus crisis.
The team, made up of Hong Kong researchers as well as experts from the United States and Germany, carried out the study in two parts from 2021 to early 2023.
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