Social and Web Data Framework for Understanding Loneliness

Loneliness can be studied through social media and web data to gain insights into the dynamic phenomenon. In this paper, we present our proposed framework through a case study on how to deploy various social media and online data sources to study loneliness comprehensively. The framework is important to understand loneliness from data perspective available online and to complement the theoretical and psychosocial understanding of loneliness. The data on loneliness is gathered through surveys and self-reporting mechanisms. This requires complementing the dynamic and vast data available on the web and through social media. Our results found that tools like Google Trend and News Analysis can give the starting point to explore loneliness in a particular region. Tools like X (formerly Twitter), Reddit, and other social media can give behavioral data on loneliness which can be analyzed through sentiment analysis and other social intelligence analysis. The framework's utility lies in its potential to inform policies, interventions, and initiatives addressing loneliness through data. However, it is crucial to acknowledge limitations, such as data availability, biases in user-generated content, and ethical considerations.