Solitude, Psychological Need Satisfaction and Self-construals Among University Students

Today, it is seen that solitary times are becoming more important which individuals take time to their interests, become aware of feelings and problem solving. In order to constructive experience of solitude, related variables must be investigated. The present study aims to investigate the relationships between the solitude of university students the psychological need satisfaction, the types of solitude experiences and self-construal. 662 (Female= 474, 71.6%, Male= 161, 24.3%) university students comprised the sample of the study. The average age of the participants is 20.58 (Sd= 2.10). In study, Personal Information Form, Preference for Solitude Scale, Types of Solitude Experiences Scale, Need Satisfaction Scale, and Related-Individualistic-Collectivistic Self Scale were used. As a result of Multiple Linear Regression analysis, it was found that the types of solitude, psychological need satisfaction and self-construal variables predicted 21% of the participants' preference for solitude. According to the results, individuals who experience positive types of solitude and have individualistic self-construal prefer to solitude more, while individuals who meet the relatedness psychological need prefer to solitude at a low level. This study is thought to contribute to the literature regarding the way individuals’ preference for solitude in the context of personal, environmental and cultural variables. Keywords Solitude, psychological need satisfaction and self-construal