Swedish study reveals 'existential loneliness' in teens—a hidden crisis schools miss
Researchers have identified a distinct type of adolescent loneliness—feeling empty, lost, and trapped between identities—that differs from ordinary social isolation and may require different support strategies. The finding suggests schools and mental health providers need to rethink how they identify and help struggling teens, with potential implications for youth mental health policy and intervention design.
Originaltitel: Trapped and lost in transition: Existential loneliness during adolescence described in retrospect by Swedish university students
Experiences of loneliness are common during adolescence and previous research has shown these experiences to be related to physical and mental ill-being. However, there is limited knowledge of one kind of loneliness during adolescence – existential loneliness – which can chal-lenge the possibilities of offering adequate support. Narrations of experi-ences in retrospect may lead to a deepened understanding of a phenomenon. Therefore, this study aims to describe the phenomenon of existential loneliness during adolescence through Swedish university students’ retrospective written narratives (n = 67). The study has a qualitative design with a phenomenological approach, and the data were analysed inductively. The findings show that existential loneliness during adolescence means feeling empty and lost while painfully trapped in an alienating borderland in the search for belonging, sense of self, and meaning. This knowledge can be used as a basis for the development of interventions aiming at supporting adolescents’ well-being