The purpose of this study was to examine the nursing staffs interpretation of elderly peoples loneliness in nursing homes to get a deeper understanding of the processes causing loneliness and how it can be managed. Our main questions dealt with how the nursing staff experience elderlies loneliness, the impact of institutionalization in relation to loneliness and what strategies nursing staff use to counteract this loneliness. To answer these questions we interviewed 8 elderly care personnel working at two different nursing homes using qualitative semi-structured interviews including a vignette. Our interviews had questions regarding relations between elderly and the nursing staff, loneliness and strategies to manage loneliness. The purpose of the vignette was to encourage the nursing staff to reflect upon how they would act in a situation regarding an elderly person who suffered from social and physical issues. The results of the study were analysed using Goffmans essays about asylums and the social gerontology theories activity- and disengagement theory. The main results of this study were that institutionalization had a significant impact in elderly peoples life at the nursing home. The consequence of the institution was that the environment and activities could give the elderly feelings of loss of self-determination at the nursing home. The main strategies to counteract loneliness for the nursing staff were to establish emotional bonds to the elderly using non-serviceoriented conversations. Our study shows that the nursing staff had a significant role regarding the elderly’s experiences of loneliness. The nursing staffs view on loneliness could affect the institutionalization causing feelings of loneliness among the elderly at the nursing home.