Confidants and well-being: a note on male friendship in old age

Health Practices and Perceptions of Social Support in Persons Over Age Sixty

This exploratory study investigated associations between health practices and perceptions of social support for 64 persons ages 60 to 75 years in San Diego, California. In general, elders who were satisfied with their relationships with other people engaged in more healthful practices than those who were not satisfied. Health practices had a stronger association with satisfaction with social support than with the number of supporters. The strongest linkages to health behaviors were variables concerned with communication with other people. Surprisingly, men showed significantly higher correlations between health habits and satisfaction with social support through sharing than women. Significant differences were found, however, between active and inactive elders. Frail, homebound elders had lower correlations between health practices and social support than the other two more active groups.

Continuity and change in friendships in advanced old age: findings from the Berkeley older generation study

A longitudinal study of friendships between young-old and old-old adults found far more continuity than change in amount of contact with friends. Nevertheless, activities with casual friends more often occurred in groups, whereas activities with close friends were more often concerned with exchanging confidences, with sharing interesting experiences and thoughts, and with helping each other. Gender differences are more pronounced than life-course differences. Men declined in number of new friends, in their desire for close friendships, in the less intimate nature of their interactions with friends, and in involvement in beyond-family activities, while women did not change. Questions about closest friends revealed only a trivial difference between men and women in young-old age; but in old-old age, men (but not women) had declined in many measures of friendship.

Reactions of Older Women to the Death of Their Close Friends

In this study we examined the reactions of thirty-eight older women to the death of their close friends. The sense of loss that the women felt when their close friends died resulted in the development of new and closer relationships with other friends and relatives. The women's primary advice to others who had lost a close friend was to remember their friend, seek out new friendships, and be active. Differences in the women's responses were observed according to their age, marital status, and health. Results pointed to the need for increased recognition, research, and support of individuals who experience the death of close friends in later life.

The influence of separation orientation on life satisfaction in the elderly

Good health, involvement in social activity, and the presence of a confidant have all been found to be important factors for life satisfaction of the elderly. However, there is a significant minority of the elderly for whom these findings do not hold. The results of this study indicate that individuals' separation orientation helps explain the differential impact of important environmental factors on life satisfaction. Those who are overly dependent tend to be more adversely affected by poor self-rated health and inadequate formal activity than balanced or overly self-sufficient participants. In contrast, the presence of a confidant was associated with higher life satisfaction scores for overly dependent participants, but was associated with decreased life satisfaction for overly self-sufficient participants.

Friendships in later life: definitions and maintenance patterns

This study examined the meaning and maintenance of friend relationships in later life. The sample consisted of forty-one males and seventy-four females, sixty years of age or older. Participants were asked a series of open-ended questions regarding their past and present relationships with their friends. While older men and women tended to agree on the characteristics of a friend, gender differences emerged when they were asked to differentiate between a "friend" and a "close friend." Older women were more likely to consider friends made earlier in their lives as still part of their friend network than were older men. Perceptions of current involvement with friends also differed depending upon the gender of the respondent. Discussion centered on the definition of friends in later life and gender differences found in maintenance patterns.