Katherine L. Fiori

Profiles of social relations among older adults: a cross-cultural approach

ABSTRACT This study extends previous research on the profiles of social relations in three ways: (1) by including both functional and qualitative characteristics of social relations; (2) by examining the association of these profiles with mental and physical health and mortality; and (3) by exploring these profiles and associations in two cultures. Using samples of approximately 500 adults aged 60 or more years from the Social Relations and Mental Health over the Life Course studies in both the United States and Japan, separate cluster analyses were conducted for each country. The common or shared network types were labelled ‘diverse’, ‘restricted’, ‘friend-focused’ and ‘family-focused’, but in the US we found two types of ‘friend-focused’ networks (supported and unsupported) and two types of ‘restricted’ networks (structurally- and functionally-restricted). In addition, we found a unique network type in Japan: ‘married and distal’. Multivariate analyses of variance and Cox regressions revealed that whereas individuals in the functionally restricted network type had the worse physical and mental health in the US, Americans in the structurally-restricted network type had the lowest survival rates at a 12-year follow-up. Interestingly, there were no wellbeing differences by network type in Japan. The findings have been interpreted in the light of social relations theories, with special emphasis on the importance of taking a multidimensional perspective and exploring cultural variation.

Locus of control as a mediator of the relationship between religiosity and life satisfaction: Age, race, and gender differences

Research indicates that religiosity is associated with better psychological health. However, some studies have shown negative effects of religiosity on psychological health. It was hypothesized that these contradictory findings may be due to the fact that different loci of control beliefs affect psychological health differently. The purpose of this paper is twofold: (1) to verify a model in which locus of control mediates the relationship between religiosity and life satisfaction, and (2) to examine whether this model varies by age, gender, and race. Using Structural Equation Modelling to analyze Wave 1 of the Americans’ Changing Lives dataset, this study confirms the mediation model and suggests that the relationship between religiosity and locus of control varies by gender and age.

The dynamic interplay of social network characteristics, subjective well-being, and health: The costs and benefits of socio-emotional selectivity.

This study investigated the interacting dynamics of different aspects of the social network, specifically network structure (size and frequency of contact), social activity engagement, and emotional support, and different aspects of health and subjective well-being in a representative sample of 2034 older adults across 6 years of development. The analysis, using latent change score models, revealed that older age at Time 1 was related to steeper declines in network structure and social engagement, but was unrelated to changes in emotional support. Furthermore, levels of social engagement and levels of emotional support predicted changes in functional health and life satisfaction with equal strength. Changes in social engagement were associated with changes in life satisfaction, positive affect, functional health, and subjective health. Changes in emotional support were only associated with changes in negative affect. Mediation analyses suggested that network structure may stimulate social engagement and emotional support, thereby exerting indirect influences on key aspects of successful aging. The results underscore the importance of considering the multifaceted nature of social relations in understanding their impact on distinct developmental goals, and across different domains of successful aging.

Social Support and Mental Health in Middle-Aged Men and Women: A Multidimensional Approach

Objective: The purpose of this study is to examine the association between various aspects of social support and depressive symptoms separately among men and women. Method: Using a sample of 6,767 middle-aged adults from one wave of the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study (1992-1993), the authors performed a series of ANCOVAs predicting depressive symptoms and controlling for background variables. Results: The authors found that the receipt of emotional support was associated with mental health in women only, whereas the provision of emotional and instrumental support was associated with mental health among men and women, but with varying patterns. For example, men who provided instrumental support to nonkin only had the highest levels of depressive symptoms, whereas women who provided instrumental support to kin only had the highest levels of symptoms. Discussion: This study helps to clarify if and what types of social support are related to mental health in men and women.

Social relations and depressive symptomatology: Self-efficacy as a mediator

This study investigates general and social self-efficacy as possible mediators of the relationship between quantity and quality of social relations and depressive symptomatology. Mediation models were examined using a regionally representative sample of middle-aged (35–59) and older adults (60+). Hierarchical regression analyses, controlling for age, race, sex, education, health, and family composition, revealed partial mediation for several social relations predictor variables. Whereas general self-efficacy acted as a partial mediator for only middle-aged adults, social self-efficacy was a partial mediator between social relations and depressive symptomatology only among older adults. Findings suggest that self-efficacy may function as a mechanism through which social relations influence depressive symptoms, and that the importance of this mechanism as domain-specific or domain-general may vary with age.

The Impact of Social Support Networks on Mental and Physical Health in the Transition to Older Adulthood: A Longitudinal, Pattern-Centered Approach.

Social support is a multidimensional construct that consists of the type of support, the direction of support, the sources or targets of support, and whether support is actual or potential. We used latent class analysis to uncover network types based on these dimensions and to examine the association between network types and well-being among 6,824 adults (M age = 54 at T1) in the two most recent waves (1992–1993 and 2003–2005) of the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study. We found six classes of social support networks. Class membership at T1 significantly predicted changes in depressive symptomatology and self-rated health over time. Our findings are discussed in light of the utility of a pattern-centered approach for uncovering heterogeneity in the social networks of adults.

Attachment, social network size, and patterns of social exchange in later life

Dispositional styles of relating to significant others—adult attachment—are linked to social relatedness across the life span. Prior work has concentrated on the receipt of perceived social support and not examined links between attachment and patterns of exchange. Data from a sample of older adults (N 1,118) were used to examine how secure, dismissive, and fearfully avoidant dimensions were associated with network size and patterns of exchange in kin and non-kin networks. Security was related to larger network size, greater reciprocity, and less “giving” to kin, whereas dismissiveness was associated with smaller non-kin networks, greater reciprocity, less “giving” to kin and non-kin, and more relationships involving “receiving” from kin. Levels of fearful avoidance were associated with fewer reciprocal relationships and more “receiving” from kin. Data are interpreted in light of attachment’s manifestations in motivational and interpersonal systems and may help explain variations in later life social network functioning.

The adaptive and maladaptive faces of dependency in later life: Links to physical and psychological health outcomes

Objectives: Negotiating the balance between reliance on others and desires for autonomy is a fundamental task of successful aging. The purpose of the present study was to replicate and extend a three-factor model of interpersonal dependency in a sample of older adults, and to examine the physical and psychological health correlates of this multifaceted construct. Methods: Data come from the third wave of a population-based study of older Americans (n = 166; mean age 80 years). We conducted an exploratory factor analysis of selected dependency items from two scales, and then conducted logistic and hierarchical linear regressions to analyze the association of dependency factors with self-reported health, use of hypertension medication, depressed affect and positive affect. Results: We found three factors closely paralleling those of Bornstein and Languirands (Psychological Bulletin, 112(1), 3–23, 2004) measure: destructive overdependence, healthy dependency and dysfunctional detachment, as well as a fourth factor we labeled ‘healthy independence’. Healthy dependency was associated with better self-reported health. Dysfunctional detachment was related to a greater likelihood and healthy independence a lesser likelihood of taking hypertension medication. Whereas both healthy independence and healthy dependency were positively related to positive affect and negatively related to depressed affect, destructive overdependence was positively related to depressed affect. Conclusion: Understanding the complex nature of interpersonal dependency and autonomy in old age, as well as their implications for health and wellbeing, may enable practitioners to assist older adults in negotiating the task of balancing these needs.

Spiritual turning points and perceived control over the life course.

Recent evidence indicates that spirituality and religion are associated with both physical and psychological health. Because a belief that rewards are largely determined by external forces tends to be detrimental to mental health, the idea that God can be equated with such an external force seems contradictory to the proven benefits of religion and spirituality. The purpose of this article is to examine changes in perceived control in the context of spiritual turning points as uncovered in the narrative histories of 30 elderly people. We propose that for many people who derive benefits from religion or spirituality, God may act as a mediator, in the sense that trusting in God provides personal control. In addition to creating a model of God-mediated control, the studys findings suggest a relationship between recall for type of control during a spiritual turning point and the interpretation of that turning point in late life.

Late Life Attachment in Context: Patterns of Relating Among Men and Women from Seven Ethnic Groups

The purpose of the present study was to develop the later life attachment literature by providing data contrasting patterns of attachment among 616 older men and women (aged 50 to 70) from seven ethnic groups in the United States: African Americans, English-speaking Caribbeans, Haitians, Dominicans, Puerto Ricans, Eastern Europeans, and European Americans. A multivariate analysis of the variance with ethnicity, gender, and income as factors predicting four dimensional styles of attachment (secure, dismissive, preoccupied, and fearful avoidant) revealed numerous ethnic differences in attachment styles. Most notably, Haitians reported greater dismissiveness than all other groups, with Eastern Europeans reporting more than Dominicans, Puerto Ricans, European Americans and African Americans. Haitians also reported lower fearful avoidance than all other groups. Dominicans and Puerto Ricans reported greater preoccupation than Haitians, African Americans, and English-speaking Caribbeans. The most notable interactions with gender and income revealed that although preoccupation was lower among African American, English-speaking Caribbean, Haitian, and European American women versus men, it was greater among Dominican, Puerto Rican, and Eastern European women, and that whereas security was generally high among European Americans notwithstanding income, income strongly impacted attachment security in other groups. These differences are interpreted in light of ethnic differences in historical, familial, and religious contexts. This study provides a glimpse into the ethnic and cultural diversity in the ways in which older adults relate to significant others.