What are other researchers experiences of using social isolation questionnaires? Do you have a preference? If so why?
I am a PhD student currently exploring questionnaires that I could potentially use to identify older adults (50+ in this project) levels of social isolation, as part of a larger project. I have come across several questionnaires (e.g. Duke Social Support Index, Lubben Social Network Scale, Social disconnectedness questionnaire, Medical Outcomes Study Social Support Survey, Multidimensional scale of perceived social support, Social network index, De Jong Gierveld Loneliness scale) and I am currently weighing up the pros and cons of each to make a decision on which to use in this project.
I have found that some cross over with loneliness, but I would like to have separate 'scores' for social isolation and loneliness, which potentially means separate questionnaires. I have found loneliness questionnaires relatively easy to narrow down, but social isolation I've found much harder.