| The present study examined the developmental effect of repeated residential relocation during childhood and adolescence on later social intimacy and loneliness. Two groups were selected for comparison, and were obtained through recruitment notices at local universities, Internet sites and through word-of-mouth referrals. The mobility group consisted of 43 college students aged 19--21, who relocated four or more times, exclusive of their move to college, from birth to age 18. The comparison group consisted of 54 college students aged 19--21, who had never moved, exclusive of their move to college. Both groups completed the Miller Social Intimacy Scale (MSIS), the UCLA Loneliness Scale-Third Version (UCLA-3), and a demographic questionnaire. The mobile group also completed a questionnaire about their mobility history.; The constructs of relational schemas (Baldwin, 1992) and social connectedness (Lee & Robbins, 2000), as well as elements of self-psychology (Kohut, 1984), provided a framework from which to understand the potential long-term consequences of repeated interpersonal disruption and loss on later capacities for intimacy. It was hypothesized that repeated disruptions in peer relationships would cause mobile individuals to distance themselves emotionally from their peers as a reaction against further loss. Consequently, they were expected to exhibit lower levels of intimacy in their closest peer relationship and higher levels of loneliness than their non-mobile counterparts.; The findings of the study suggest that repeated mobility has no effect on the individual's ability to develop and maintain an intimate dyadic relationship, but has long-term consequences for the ability to feel a sense of closeness and belonging within a larger social network or peer group. Subjects' gender and parental levels of education did not have a significant effect on scores of either dependent variable.; Thus, the findings of this study appear to support Lee and Robbins' (2000) assertion that persons who have experienced repeated interpersonal failures due to peer rejection or isolation are able to develop some intimate relationships, but nevertheless feel an internal lack of connection to others that contributes to feelings of loneliness and social distress. |
