Do communal washrooms help against loneliness?
By admin on 30 April 2019 in Washing
Loneliness is an increasing problem in the Netherlands. 43% of the adult population (19 years and older) reported being lonely in 2016, of which 10% said they experienced severe or very serious feelings of loneliness. (Public health care, 2019). Within this, a distinction can be made between emotional loneliness (31%) and social loneliness (43%).
6.1 What is loneliness?
Loneliness is an increasing problem in the Netherlands. 43% of the adult population (19 years and older) reported being lonely in 2016, of which 10% said they experienced severe or very serious feelings of loneliness. (Public health care, 2019). Within this, a distinction can be made between emotional loneliness (31%) and social loneliness (43%). The figures below show that loneliness is greater among the less educated. 63% of the less educated feel lonely in contrast to 36% of the highly educated. This applies to both emotional loneliness and social loneliness in all age groups mentioned (RIVM, 2019). The figures show a growth in the percentage of experiencing loneliness as one gets older. Particularly social loneliness above the age of 75. This can be explained by the death of partner, relatives and friends. Furthermore, at an older age people become less mobile and independent, which can lead to social isolation (De Jong-Gierveld, 1998). Half of the Dutch people think they actively contribute to reducing loneliness. This can include small things such as having a chat and visiting people. The contribution to reducing loneliness mainly takes place within one’s own circle of family and friends. One in three Dutch people indicate that they want to do something themselves about the problem of loneliness (Loneliness, n.d.)
6.2 Is there a relationship between loneliness and a person’s way of life and/or living situation?
De Jong-Gierveld conducted research in 1984 into the relationship between the experience of loneliness and the type of housing in which a person lives. The study examines three types of housing in relation to the experience of loneliness attributable to the lack of contact with neighbours. Is the lack of contact with neighbors a factor for experiencing loneliness? Maslow’s motivation theory (Maslow, 1943) describes the needs of people . The third necessity of life from his pyramid describes the need for social contact. Social contact is understood to mean the need for friendship, positive social relationships and the need for love. A fourth need that is closely related to this is the need for appreciation, recognition and self-respect. The forms of living highlighted in De Jong-Gierveld’s research are high-rise (more than four storeys), medium-high (housing up to and including four storeys) and low-rise (single-family houses with or without a garden), (De Jong-Giersma, 1984 p. 180). It can be concluded from the study that there is a relationship between loneliness and the feeling of social isolation and the type of housing. The conclusion drawn from the research is that it is not so much the type of housing, but rather the lack of neighborly contact that promotes the feeling of loneliness (De Jong-Giersma, 1984, p.186). And contact with neighbors is lower, especially in high-rise buildings (apartment complexes) than in low-rise buildings.
6.3 What can promote contact with a neighbor?
It was stated in the above paragraph that living in high-rise buildings has to do with experiencing loneliness. Realizing a shared washing and drying room can make an important contribution to maintaining contact with fellow residents and neighbours. Especially if Wash & Play will be provided with a cozy coffee/reading area with a long table with chairs, encouraging a chat with the neighbor while enjoying a cup of coffee or tea.
6.4 Can the realization of a joint washing and drying room be seen as a social innovation?
To answer this question, an explanation follows below of what is meant by social innovation. In the book Innovation management (Huizingh, 2015, p. 72) it is written that an innovation is referred to as a social innovation if it serves a social purpose. This means that the innovation must contribute to the way in which people interact with each other in daily life or to the extent to which the innovation can offer an opportunity to the weaker in our society. Given the fact that a shared washing and drying room can contribute to having more contact with neighbors and with this people can (partly) get out of social isolation. help, it can be said that Wash & Play is a social innovation. As described above, there is an increasing level of loneliness among adults. A link has been made between the living situation and the degree of loneliness. If we look at the developments in the composition of a household over the years, we see a larger increase in the single-person household compared to the increase in the number of multi-person households (CBS StateLine, 2019). If the relocation figures of recent years are looked at, there is a noticeable increase in the number of relocations in the age category of 30 to 65 years. The decrease in the age category from 17 to 22 years is striking (CBS Trends in the Netherlands, 2019). In 2018, the Dutch housing stock consisted of 7.7 million homes. Of these homes, 3,234.00 (42%) were rental homes. Housing associations owned a total of 2,263,800 (70%) of these rental properties (CBS Trends in the Netherlands, 2019). In 2018, 98% of households had access to the internet in the Netherlands. With this percentage, the Netherlands is the leader in Europe. A smartphone is the most used device in Dutch households to use the internet. The use of smartphones has increased significantly in recent years. It is also noticeable that more and more elderly people are using the internet and shopping online (CBS Trends in the Netherlands, 2019).
