Toward the study of loneliness as a psychological phenomenon

The article is devoted to studying the phenomenon of loneliness in domestic and foreign researches. The purpose of the study was to consider controversies on the issue of loneliness from different authors and explain various opinions on the phenomenon of loneliness. It was showed that the state of loneliness can be experienced in different ways at every age and in every period of life. However, it is able to act both a resource for development and a heavy burden, which is a consequence of psychological defenses as well as unreflected personal problems. Loneliness is often result of avoiding reality, searching rescue from it in ways of using virtual reality, for example, in various addictions. It was emphasized the main problem of people experiencing loneliness: it is their inability to be alone with themselves and in the absence of interest directly to themselves and to other people.