Abstract
Loneliness is rising and might cause individual and societal costs. On the societal level, it has been linked to reduced social capital and trust. On the individual level, it can lead to depression, partly due to social stigma. With a large, incentivized trust game (N=27000), we investigate (i) the relationship between loneliness and trust, and (ii) the social reaction to loneliness. We observe (i) no negative correlation between loneliness and trust, and (ii) individuals known to be lonely are more likely to be trusted. Thus, loneliness is not a deteriorator for trust behaviors necessary for economic interactions as modeled by the trust game.