A Revised 6-Item Rasch-Type Loneliness Scale (R-RTLS-6)

Given its severe health-related consequences, reliably identifying and measuring loneliness is important. A well-known loneliness measure is the 6-Item Rasch-Type Loneliness Scale, which is also used in a revised version in German-speaking countries (R-RTLS-6). The scale is applied both as a unidimensional measure addressing overall loneliness and as a two-dimensional scale, differentiating between emotional and social loneliness. As of yet, no psychometric analysis of the R-RTLS-6 is available. In this study ( N = 287), we examined the scale’s dimensionality and Rasch-conformity. Our results indicated a two-dimensional factor structure. The emotional and social loneliness subscales showed neither threshold disordering nor differential item functioning (DIF) across several subgroups (e.g., gender, education, residence). Overall, our findings suggest that the R-RTLS-6 meets the polytomous Rasch model criteria.