INTRODUCTION:

A key element in personal development is self-efficacy, or the ability to create and maintain a sense of personal competence to achieve certain life objectives. As students navigate new experiences, build relationships, and face a variety of problems, self-efficacy plays a crucial role in fostering emotional and social well-being in the setting of university life. Among young adults, loneliness—a depressing sense of social isolation—is a serious public health concern, especially for those attending higher education institutions (Simegn et al., 2023) (Diehl et al., 2018).

Through a particular focus on the changing face of university life, this study seeks to understand the relationship between self-efficacy and loneliness among youth. By investigating this connection, the aim was to learn about the psychological and emotional well-being of this community of people who are at risk so that it can further provide important knowledge for developing targeted interventions and support networks that will enhance mental health and academic achievement. In recent times, there has been a rising interest in loneliness among scientists, professional organizations, and the mainstream media (Enns, 2022). It is plausible that many individuals undergo distressing feelings of isolation and loneliness at certain points in their lives. Loneliness is essentially the subjective perception that an individual lacks meaningful interpersonal relationship. For college students, the relationship between loneliness and self-efficacy is significant.

Young people experience many changes between the ages of sixteen and twenty-four, which are referred to as youth. Moving for college or changing schools can strain relationships and separate people off from their close friends and family, which can make them feel alone. Subjective loneliness is exacerbated by solitude or living alone, but this is different from objective social isolation, which is measured by the number of social interactions with others in the immediate personal surroundings (Cacioppo and Cacioppo, 2019). This self-perpetuating loneliness loop is characterized by hostile, stressful, pessimistic, anxious and poor self-esteem feelings (Cacioppo et al., 2006) and represents a dispositional propensity that activates neurobiological and behavioural pathways that lead to unfavourable health outcomes. Moving to a new place can be scary as well. In addition to losing their social networks, they might also lose their feeling of community. Loneliness is a growing public health concern and it has recently been explored in relation to students' health along with issues with social integration (Stadtfeld et al., 2019). Empirical research links loneliness to poor well-being (Erzen et al., 2018) including low life fulfilment (Çivitci et al., 2009; Kong and You, 2013), low personal satisfaction (VanderWeele et al., 2012), little contentment (Hombrados-Mendieta et al., 2013) and a lack of purpose in life (Hicks and King, 2009). Students who experience loneliness frequently experience difficulties with focus, motivation and engagement with their studies (DiMalta et al., 2022). Beyond undergraduate and graduate school boundaries, loneliness is a universal sensation (Arora et al., 2023). A lonely person's ability to think creatively and constructively is impacted. A person's ability to be productive is hampered by loneliness and if we are unable to help our youth reach their full potential, this will have an impact on society's future. Some individuals think that overcoming loneliness is something that happens when one is mature enough to love being by oneself. Therefore, it's crucial to support young people in overcoming loneliness. Loneliness is a common problem among college students, especially those who are beginning their first year. Due to feelings of embarrassment or humiliation, many students are hesitant to bring up the matter. The problem is only made worse by this quiet. The objective of this is to study relationship of self-efficacy with loneliness among youth of G.B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar. Designing specialized solutions and creating a supportive environment that enables students to thrive in these trying times require an understanding of the state of loneliness in universities. Feelings of loneliness are more common among students with low self-efficacy, which may have a detrimental effect on their general wellbeing and academic performance (Ramos et al., 2022). Understanding the emotional and psychological components that affect academic success and general well-being requires a thorough understanding of the link between self-efficacy and loneliness in young people. This can help researchers and educators to create focused treatments to increase students' self-efficacy, lessen loneliness, and ultimately improve their mental health and academic performance by looking into this relationship.

MATERIALS AND METHODS:

The sample size for the current study was established using Yamane's formula, which is the population to sample selection formula. One useful method for guaranteeing the objectivity of the observations is random sampling (Leech et al., 2005). Ninety-three postgraduate students and two hundred first-year undergraduate students from G.B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology in Uttarakhand made up the final sample of two hundred ninety-three individuals selected at random for this study. The degree of loneliness was measured using the Perceived Loneliness Scale (Jha, 1999) and self-efficacy of lonely individuals was measured by Self-efficacy Scale.

A five-point Likert scale is used by the Perceived Loneliness Scale, a one-dimensional self-report research tool, to gauge an individual's level of loneliness. Thirty-six items make up this scale; twenty-eight of them are positive and lean towards loneliness, while the remaining eight are negative. The minimum and maximum scores ranged from thirty-six to one hundred eighty. Positively expressed terms were scored from five to one, and negatively worded sentences were scored from one to five. It classified the current state of youth loneliness as low, moderate, or extremely lonely. A low score indicated little loneliness in the respondent, whereas a high score indicated high loneliness.

To measure self-efficacy, Self-efficacy Scale was designed to evaluate an individual's degree of confidence in their capacity to complete a task, accomplish a goal, or get beyond an obstacle if they are 12 years of age or older. This scale has 20 items, 16 of which are positive and 4 of which are negative. Within this scale, there are four dimensions.

1. Self-confidence: It is the belief in oneself and one's capacity to carry out a specific task or achieve a particular objective.

2. Efficacy expectation: It is a belief that an individual can successfully do the behaviour necessary to obtain a specific result.

3. Positive Attitude: It is the ability to perceive the silver lining in situations. It refers to maintaining a system of principles, attitudes, and thoughts that are oriented towards finding the positive, moving forward and overcoming obstacles, seeing the opportunities in every circumstance, and, as the saying goes, "looking on the bright side of life." It also refers to rising above oneself, being brave and getting back up after falling.

4. Outcome Expectation: A person's conviction that a specific behaviour will result in a particular outcome is known as an outcome expectation.

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF DATA:

After gathering the data, each question's responses were input into SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) version 20 software. SPSS is a software tool commonly employed by social scientists for the statistical analysis of data (Pallant, 2006). To derive meaningful and relevant conclusions, the collected data was organized and compiled in line with the research objectives. Tables, graphs, and pie charts were utilized to communicate the researcher's findings. The data underwent assessment through mean calculation and correlation coefficient computation to draw insights.

Mean:

It was used to find out the average value for the test items.

Correlation coefficient:

Correlation coefficient was determined to find out the relationship between self-efficacy and loneliness among university students.

RESULT:

Assessment of Loneliness among youth:

There are three levels of loneliness according to the perceived loneliness scale: low, moderate, and high. Table 1 shows the range and level of loneliness.

Table 1: Range and level of loneliness

Range	Level of Loneliness
36 – 84	Low
84 – 132	Moderate
132 – 180	High

Prevalence of loneliness among first year undergraduate youth:

In figure 1; the prevalence of loneliness is depicted among the first-year students of undergraduate degree program. Unfortunately, eighty nine percent of undergraduate students reported feeling moderately lonely, eight percent reported feeling highly lonely and three percent reported feeling low lonely.

Figure 1: Prevalence of Loneliness in Undergraduate students

Prevalence of loneliness among first year postgraduate youth:

In figure 2; the prevalence of loneliness is depicted among the first-year students of postgraduate degree program. Sadly, eighty seven percent of Postgraduate students reported feeling moderately lonely, eight percent highly lonely, and five percent low lonely.

Figure 2: Prevalence of Loneliness in Postgraduate students

Assessment of self-efficacy of lonely youth

Level of self-efficacy in undergraduate students

The level of self-efficacy of the lonely youth was assessed through administration of Self-efficacy scale. This tool assesses on various domains which are: - Self-confidence, Efficacy expectation, Positive attitude, Outcome expectation.

The degree of self-efficacy among undergraduate students is depicted in Fig.3; 94% of students had poor self-efficacy, while only 3% had high and average levels.

Figure 3: Percentage distribution of level of self-efficacy in first year undergraduate students

Level of self-efficacy in post graduate students

The self-efficacy measure was used to gauge the lonely youth's degree of self-efficacy. This instrument evaluates across multiple dimensions, including: outcome expectation, efficacy expectation, positive attitude, and self-confidence.

Fig. 4 shows the degree of self-efficacy among post graduate students. 88% of students had poor levels, 8% had average level and only 4% had high levels.

Figure 4: Percentage distribution of level of self-efficacy in first year postgraduate students

Relation between Loneliness and Self-efficacy among undergraduate respondents:

Table 2 reveals a negative correlation coefficient between self-efficacy and perceived loneliness among undergraduate respondents, indicating an inverse relationship between the two variables.

Relation between Loneliness and Self-efficacy among postgraduate respondents

Table 3 illustrates an inverse relationship between self-efficacy and perceived loneliness among postgraduate respondents, as denoted by the negative correlation coefficient. This suggests that higher levels of self-efficacy are associated with lower levels of perceived loneliness in this cohort.

Table 2: Correlation between Loneliness and Self-efficacy among undergraduate respondents

		Loneliness	Self-efficacy
Loneliness	Pearson Correlation	1	-0.388
	Sig (2-tailed)		0.000
	N	93	93

Table 3: Correlation between Loneliness and Self-efficacy among postgraduate respondents

		Loneliness	Self-efficacy
Loneliness	Pearson Correlation	1	-0.094
	Sig (2-tailed)		0.186
	N	200	200

CONCLUSION:

In recent years, the burgeoning concern of loneliness has cast a formidable shadow across university campuses. This research paper has diligently explored the escalating issue of loneliness among university students, with a specific focus on first-year undergraduates and postgraduates. This study's findings serve as a sharp reminder that loneliness is not a remote or isolated phenomenon; it is a concrete, prevalent reality within academic settings. Our findings have unequivocally affirmed that loneliness is a shared experience, transcending the boundaries of undergraduate and postgraduate degree programs. This emphasizes the importance of understanding the substantial effects of academic changes, the pressures of higher education, and the subtle dynamics of developing new social relationships on the young, vulnerable minds navigating these transitions. The revelation advocates for a holistic approach that includes the development of targeted therapies, the expansion of mental health services, and the development of supportive peer networks. Furthermore, our study calls for future research that goes deeper into the complex mechanisms underlying this phenomenon, taking into account the impact of cultural, gender, and identity-related characteristics. This broader perspective will aid in developing more effective measures to tackle the problem and establish a loving, inclusive environment that promotes university students' holistic well-being.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST:

The authors have no conflicts of interest regarding this investigation.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my advisor and the university for their invaluable support and guidance throughout this research.

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Received on 19.09.2024 Revised on 15.10.2024

Accepted on 06.11.2024 Published on 18.12.2024

Available online on December 27, 2024

Int. J. of Reviews and Res. in Social Sci. 2024; 12(4):253-258.

DOI: 10.52711/2454-2687.2024.00042

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Creative Commons License.