Solitude skills and the private self.

Abstract

The construct of solitude skills suggests that successfully navigating the domain of solitude may require specific psychological resources, but this theoretical possibility has not yet been investigated empirically. Fourteen well-adjusted adults (M age = 49.5) participated in a qualitative study that examined their lived experiences with solitude and sought to identify the skills they utilized when engaging in positive solitude. Thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006) of narrative data resulted in the identification of eight solitude skills organized within three central concepts: Connect with Self included the skills of enjoying solitary activities, emotion regulation, and introspection; the skills included in Protect Time were making time to be alone, using that time mindfully, and validating one's need for solitude; and the skills of Find a Balance included heeding signals to enter solitude and knowing when to exit solitude. These findings illuminate how the documented benefits of solitude are enacted and illustrate how solitude sustains the private self, which clinicians have argued promotes well-being (Modell, 1992). Knowledge of these skills may be valuable for those who volitionally enter solitude as well as those who find themselves in unwanted isolation. These findings lay the groundwork for future studies to examine whether the solitude skills identified here apply to other populations, and to explore the efficacy of solitude skills trainings in promoting psychological well-being or as a clinical intervention.

The Psychological Affordances of Solitude in Emerging Adulthood

“…Despite the aforementioned advantage of qualitative designs, such studies are rare in the solitude literature, and in-depth interviews even rarer; two recent exceptions include an investigation of the meanings of positive solitude using written and verbal interviews with a sample of adults (Ost Mor et al, 2021), and an exploration of solitude skills using lengthy semi-structured interviews with middle-aged adults who had lifelong experiences with volitional solitude (Thomas, 2021). Their findings have contributed to theory building by identifying, respectively, the components of positive solitude and a provisional set of skills instrumental in benefiting from time alone.…”

Person-specific priorities in solitude

“…The findings on idiosyncratic solitude priorities have implications for developing interventions on cultivating "positive solitude" (Ost Mor et al, 2021) or "solitude skills" (Thomas, 2021). It is possible that there isn't a "cookie-cutter" intervention to increase people's satisfaction with alone time.…”

Happy Alone? Motivational Profiles of Solitude and Well-Being Among Senior Living Residents

“…It is likely that people with more self-determined motivations for solitude spend time alone in ways that are more satisfying, meaningful, or enriching (cf. Thomas, 2021); therefore, greater alone time may be more beneficial for them compared to those who lack such motivation.…”

“…While some who enter solitude may not feel "happy" in the hedonic sense, they may nevertheless find it meaningful, the third defining characteristic of positive solitude. Self-determined solitude correlates with personal growth in interview narratives (Thomas, 2021;Weinstein et al, 2021) and quantitative measures alike (Thomas & Azmitia, 2019;van Zyl et al, 2018).…”

“…Although concerns about loneliness are warranted, it is important to note that time alone can also be experienced positively, as a growing body of research attests (Larson, 1990; Long & Averill, 2003; Ost Mor et al, 2020; Thomas, 2021). Research on solitude in older adulthood is scarce, especially compared to the vast literature on loneliness in old age, but the available evidence indicates that time alone in late life is not a uniformly negative experience.…”