This book analyzes many and varied aspects of the paradox that characterizes the universal experience of human loneliness. The perspective is primarily that of Developmental Psychology, with an emphasis on the early years of life. It is during this time that the foundations of human existence are laid, and thus the essence of the human experience, loneliness.

Research in Psychology from around the world and in Greece sheds light on the origins and paradoxes of this experience. Neurosciences, theology, philosophy, sociology, anthropology, folklore, philology, linguistics, pedagogy, as well as the narratives of children and young people, contribute to the understanding of the paradoxes of loneliness through an interdisciplinary lens.

The scientific approach to loneliness, at its best, does not differ greatly from the poetry of anonymous and renowned individuals. Poetry fundamentally has loneliness as its main motive and content. Psychology, and even more so Developmental Psychology, cannot ignore that science and art walk hand in hand, as the two sides of creation within human culture.

Thus, the approach to loneliness in this book is not made solely in a strictly academic manner, but also with the help of poetry and art in general. The goal of the book is to open a path towards the recognition and acceptance of the paradox that lies within the nature and genesis of loneliness. This acceptance is a paramount developmental achievement, a lifelong process, and a universal phenomenon.