Transverse oscillations of thin threads in solar prominences are frequently reported in high-resolution observations. The typical periods of the oscillations are in the range of 3 to 20 min. A peculiar feature of the oscillations is that they are damped in time, with short damping times corresponding to few periods. Theoretically, the oscillations are interpreted as kink magnetohydrodynamic waves. However, the mechanism responsible for the damping is not well known. Here we perform a comparative study between different physical mechanisms that may damp kink waves in prominence threads. The considered processes are thermal conduction, cooling by radiation, resonant absorption, and ion-neutral collisions. We find that thermal conduction and radiative cooling are very inefficient for the damping of kink waves. The effect of ion-neutral collisions is minor for waves with periods usually observed. Resonant absorption is the only process that produces an efficient damping. The damping times theoretically predicted by resonant absorption are compatible with those reported in the observations.
