Dr. Andrew David Wormald

Summary

Funding Agency

HRB

Programme

Secondary Data Analysis

Summary

Loneliness affects nearly two thirds of the population and has been described as a modern social pandemic. There is very little knowledge about Loneliness in people with an intellectual disability, and what work has been conducted has depended on models derived from the wider population. Models developed from Intellectual Disability Supplement to the Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (IDS-TILDA) data have shown that some precursors to loneliness such as functional limitations and poor transport are specific to this population. However, they have demonstrated that loneliness is poorly understood and needs a ground up approach to derive loneliness specific variables and deduce the factors likely to be amenable to intervention. The primary aim of this research is to generate an understanding of loneliness specific to people with an intellectual disability guided by the reality of their lived experience. Participants will be recruited from those who have reported loneliness in the IDS-TILDA. Each participant will be asked to complete a semi-structured interview. Transcripts will be analysed using Reflexive Thematic Analysis. This research and the topic guide build on previous research by this research team and will lead to the submission of a larger grant application to develop loneliness interventions for this population.

Funding Agency

The Faculty of Health Sciences

Programme

The Dean's Research Initiatives

Person Months

1