Barriers to identifying and comparing rates of adaptive and maladaptive loneliness: Commentary for "Loneliness prevalence of community-dwelling older adults and the impact of the mode of measurement, data collection, and country: A systematic review and meta-analysis" by Stegen et al

The commentary in the International Psychogeriatrics journal discusses the challenges in identifying and comparing rates of adaptive and maladaptive loneliness among older adults. The authors highlight methodological barriers, such as the lack of consensus on temporal and severity characteristics that differentiate adaptive from problematic loneliness. They also address the need for clear terminology and standardized measures to facilitate comparisons across different studies. The commentary emphasizes the importance of understanding the temporal and severity boundaries of loneliness to develop effective prevention and treatment methods. [Extracted from the article]