Loneliness of the Frail Elderly

The data were collected in 2021, as part of the REDESIGN project funded by the Fondazione Cariplo, coordinated by Cattolica University of Milan with the University of Verona and the University of Molise. The questionnaire is made of different sections that analyse multiple aspects of the respondent. Initially it is asked to recall a “critical event”, that could be having become a widower, having had to cope with an illness, one's own or others', or the covid 19 pandemic. Section A presents personal data of the respondent and of the other household’s members. It is included also a part on the number of sons, the age of them and the if him lives out of the household. Section B contains information about the housing situation, such as the type of accommodation of the family, the mobility condition and the distance from some services as hospitals or aggregation centres. Section C includes questions about family consumption, with special attention to consumer goods assignable to individual family members, such as alcoholic beverages, personal hygiene, cosmetics and clothing, as well as education expenditure, technology and transportation expenditure. Section D, then, considers the economic situation, focusing on housing income, the contribution of each member and savings condition. Section E focuses on time use and the allocation of the time of the day in categories, as work, housing activities, free time and volunteering activities. Section F concerns health status with the EQ5D index, the SELSA loneliness index (Social and Emotional Loneliness Scale for Adults), which has been extended to include the dimension of loneliness due to the use of digital media, quality of life and the value of social networks. Central questions of this section were asked referring to the period pre critical event and after. The data were collected through a CAWI (computed assisted web interviewing) in 2021. The national sample consists of 609 observations of elderly people over 75 years old. It is representative at the national level. The sample is predominantly composed of multi-person households, with the majority comprising two individuals. The respondents were primarily older males, with an average age of 76 years, and hailed from various regions across Italy. A significant portion have adequate educational qualifications, and many are retired or have completed their employment. Additionally, a considerable number have adult children living separately and grandchildren, indicating the presence of multiple generations within families. The data include information on the consumption of assignable goods and time use appropriate to estimate collective household model of both consumption and labor supply.