Loneliness Between Structural Objectivity and Lived Subjectivity: An Integrative Analysis of Contemporary Sociological Theories
Loneliness Between Structural Objectivity and Lived Subjectivity: An Integrative Analysis of Contemporary Sociological Theories

Summary/Abstract: This article develops a comprehensive and original perspective on the phenomenon of loneliness, offering an interdisciplinary theoretical synthesis and proposing an innovative conceptual framework. Starting from the classical distinction between emotional and social loneliness, the analysis expands by integrating five major sociological paradigms: structural functionalism, symbolic interactionism, sociological constructivism, critical theory, and social network theory. Each of these approaches highlights specific dimensions of loneliness, from the dysfunctions of social cohesion to symbolic representations and dominant discourses that shape public perception. The empirical contribution of the article consists of a content analysis of Romanian online media, revealing a tendency to portray loneliness in predominantly negative and conceptually unrefined terms. At the theoretical level, the article formulates a new model — the relational ecology of loneliness — which offers a stratified reading of the phenomenon, conceived as an emergent imbalance between actual social ties, cognitive and affective representations, symbolic frameworks, and institutional structures. Through this approach, the article transcends unidimensional explanatory models and contributes to a reconceptualization of loneliness as a simultaneously social, cultural, and psychological phenomenon.

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