Gugliucci, M. R., Weaver, S. A., & Lin, A. (2021). Vet to Vet Maine: A Pilot Study Measuring Effectiveness of a Veteran Companion Program in Reducing Social Isolation and Loneliness. Journal of Veterans Studies, 7(1), 71–85. DOI: http://doi.org/10.21061/jvs.v7i1.198
This study pilots an effort to evaluate the Vet to Vet Maine companion program effectiveness in reducing social isolation and feelings of loneliness, especially for Veteran Friends, those veterans wanting companionship, as well as Veteran Volunteers. An added component to this study is the inclusion of Veteran Friends’ Care Partners to determine if the Vet to Vet Maine companion program provided any positive effects for them.
Social isolation and loneliness have long been recognized as significant factors of well-being particularly for older adults (Kuwert et al., 2019). Human beings are social by nature, and high-quality social relationships are vital for health and well-being. Like many other social determinants of health, social isolation (i.e., an objective lack of social contact with others) and loneliness (i.e., the subjective feeling of being isolated) are significant yet underappreciated public health risks (Cacioppo & Patrick, 2008). Social isolation and loneliness are associated with poor physical and mental health outcomes including higher rates of mortality, depression, and cognitive decline (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine [NASEM], 2020).
A narrative review of studies on military veterans’ loneliness and social isolation conducted by Wilson et al. (2018) pointed out that individuals experience loneliness in highly individualized ways. While seeking companionship, individuals often have particular preferences about the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics they desired in a companion (Cohen-Mansfield & Eisner, 2020). Loneliness emphasizes the fact that social species require not simply the presence of others but also the presence of significant others whom they can trust, who give them a goal in life, with whom they can plan, interact, and work together to survive and prosper (Cacioppo & Patrick, 2008). Moreover, merely the physical presence of significant others in one’s social environment is not a sufficient condition; one needs to feel connected to significant others to not feel lonely.
The aforementioned studies provide insight into the importance and design of the Vet to Vet Maine program. Military veterans represent 11.8% of the population of Maine, nearly twice that of the United States (US). As the oldest state, Maine has a high percentage (50.69%) of veterans over the age of 65 (US Census, 2017). The costs of social isolation and/or loneliness for 14% of the Americans who completed the joint National Institute on Aging and Social Security Administration survey have been estimated to add nearly $7 billion to federal health care expenditures. These costs do not include the emotional and social costs to affected families and individuals (Cudjoe et al., 2020). An increasing number of veteran-focused research studies point to the Veterans Administration (VA) health provider awareness of the relationship between age, isolation and loneliness, and the need for mental and physical health services (Cacioppo et al., 2008; Bass et al., 2012; Kuwert et al., 2014; Wilson et al., 2018). There is variability of affect with individual responses to different intervention strategies in addressing isolation and loneliness.