The Relationship Between Dog Companionship and Loneliness Levels Among Over 50’s

The current study, conducted on 151 adults 50 years of age and older, consists of three main aims: 1) To determine a relationship between dog- companionship and loneliness 2) To determine an interaction between dog companionship, loneliness and gender 3) To determine whether a relationship exists between dog- companionship and loneliness, after controlling for social connection. Based on the available literature and evidence it was hypothesized that 1) Dog owners will have different levels of loneliness compared to non-dog owners 2) Interaction occurs between gender and dog ownership on levels of loneliness 3) A relationship between dog ownership and loneliness will remain after controlling for social connection. Participants were required to answer various demographic questions and scales, The Lubben Social Network Scale and The UCLA Loneliness Scale to gain an understanding into their levels of social connection and levels of loneliness. The participants were recruited using convenience and snowball sampling techniques. The results showed a significant relationship between dog companionship and loneliness, even after controlling for social connection. No relationship was found between gender and dog companionship on levels of loneliness. The findings of this study will have implications for possible ways to reduce and alleviate feelings of loneliness among adults over 50.