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  • © 2020

Exploring Student Loneliness in Higher Education

A Discursive Psychology Approach

Palgrave Macmillan

Authors:

  • Focuses on student experiences of loneliness in UK higher education institutions
  • Uses Discourse Analysis to explore how undergraduate students manage social identities when disclosing feelings of loneliness
  • Ties in with the current media interest in student mental health at university.

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Table of contents (6 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xiii
  2. Disclosures of Loneliness

    • Lee Oakley
    Pages 27-57
  3. Accounting for Constraints

    • Lee Oakley
    Pages 59-109
  4. Invoking Social Credentials

    • Lee Oakley
    Pages 111-143
  5. Talking Up Temporal Contrasts

    • Lee Oakley
    Pages 145-176
  6. Conclusions

    • Lee Oakley
    Pages 177-182
  7. Back Matter

    Pages 183-185

About this book

This book is an in-depth qualitative linguistic study of loneliness disclosures in interviews with undergraduate students in the UK. While much loneliness research has been undertaken in the areas of psychology, social policy and education, such studies have prioritised the social factors behind mental distress without paying explicit attention to the medium in which such distress is communicated and embodied (i.e. language). This monograph supplements this growing body of work by arguing for a stronger focus on the insights which linguistic analysis can provide for investigating how and why loneliness is disclosed by Higher Education students. This book is the first study to address discourses of loneliness in Higher Education specifically from a linguistic perspective, and will be of interest to education and healthcare professionals, counselling and welfare providers, and students and scholars of discourse analysis and linguistics. 


Reviews

“In this very timely and topical book, the author breaks with the dominant quantitative paradigm in order to focus on the detail of narrated experience of loneliness.” (Dariusz Galasinski, Professor of Discourse and Cultural Studies, University of Wolverhampton, UK)

“A timely and important work, providing sensitive and perceptive analysis into a long-neglected challenge facing students in UK higher education today. Highly recommended reading for all who seek a greater understanding of their students' experiences.” (Sarah Turner, Lecturer in English (Stylistics), Coventry University, UK)

Authors and Affiliations

  • University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK

    Lee Oakley

About the author

Lee Oakley is a Senior Lecturer in English Language and Linguistics at the University of Portsmouth, UK.

Bibliographic Information

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 79.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 99.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 99.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access