Helping students research how u3a can be a remedy to loneliness

Jenny, Chair of Croydon u3a, shares how they have been working with students from the Netherlands on their BA research into how social contact mitigates against loneliness. The students, from Utrecht University, also experienced Interest Groups Online activity and spoke to those members about their experiences.

Two students from Utrecht University in The Netherlands have spent ten weeks in London, collecting research information about how social contact mitigates against loneliness and related conditions of isolation, depression, ill-health and general decline in older people, for their B.A. thesis. They will produce a single study to which they have both contributed with prior research, meeting u3a members in person and on-line and writing up the results.

They attended the London Region Chairs’ Networking Day and were able to speak to members from a wide range of u3as – large and small, well-established and quite new. They have participated in many Croydon u3a activities, as well as Interest Groups Online to study and compare the different formats, their pros and cons.

There have been huge benefits on both sides –

• The opportunity for some solid intergenerational conversations;
• u3a members’ opinions and life experiences listened to and valued;
• members actively helping young people and vice versa;
• pushing the boundaries for all readers of the finished document about what life is like, and can be like, for some people who are no longer working fulltime;
• raising some questions such as the gender imbalance;
• providing a positive experience for students working in a foreign country.

Croydon u3a member Anne says, "I thought their research was very interesting and important.- not least because ultimately it was about the quality of human life. At the core of this work was the concept of ‘culture’ and the recognition that this feeds into understanding of people, which consequently helps when considering future developments, to create an even more positive environment."

Croydon u3a member Sharon says, "They proved to us, the young can learn from the past and the elders embrace the future. By becoming each other’s strengths, we can chart a course towards a more fulfilling and enriching future, ensuring that the road ahead is not just walked quickly but walked wisely."

The whole project has been very interesting, worthwhile and hugely rewarding and I have been humbled by our members keenness to open their arms and their hearts to facilitate the students’ research.