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Is Living Alone "Aging Alone"? Solitary Living, Network Types, and Well-Being.

ABSTRACT: OBJECTIVES:When identifying older adults who may be at risk of being without necessary supports, policy makers and scholars tend to focus on those living alone, neglecting differences within that group. We examine how their social networks contribute to subjective well-being, why some of them fare better and compare their well-being to older adults coresiding with others. METHOD:Data are from the fourth wave of the Survey of Health and Retirement in Europe (N = 53,383). A network typology for older people living alone (N = 10,047) is constructed using a latent class analysis. Using ordinary least squares (OLS) regressions, we examined differences in subjective well-being (life satisfaction, satisfaction with social network, depression) by network type, adding adults coresiding with others (N = 43,336) as comparison group. RESULTS:We find four social network types among older adults living alone. The likelihood of having "restricted" and "child-based" networks is greater in Eastern and Southern European countries, whereas the likelihood of having "friend-oriented" networks is greater in Western and Northern European countries. Across countries, only those with "restricted" networks tend to have the poorest well-being. Those with "diverse" networks have even better well-being than coresiding older adults. DISCUSSION:Our study shows the importance of drawing distinctions within the group of older adults living alone. Most (two thirds) are not vulnerable and at risk, but fare just as well or even better than peers who coreside with others. Country-level factors shape the opportunities to build satisfactory networks, but subjective well-being depends more strongly on individual resources, including social networks, than country-level factors.

SUBMITTER: Djundeva M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6777768 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Is Living Alone "Aging Alone"? Solitary Living, Network Types, and Well-Being.

Djundeva Maja M Dykstra Pearl A PA Fokkema Tineke T

The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences 20191001 8

<h4>Objectives</h4>When identifying older adults who may be at risk of being without necessary supports, policy makers and scholars tend to focus on those living alone, neglecting differences within that group. We examine how their social networks contribute to subjective well-being, why some of them fare better and compare their well-being to older adults coresiding with others.<h4>Method</h4>Data are from the fourth wave of the Survey of Health and Retirement in Europe (N = 53,383). A network ...[more]

PMID: 30312447

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Project description:Importance:Subjective well-being is associated with reduced mortality, but it is not clear whether additional time is spent in good health or with chronic disease and disability. Objective:To evaluate the associations between affective well-being, total life expectancy, and life expectancy free of disability and chronic disease. Design, Setting, and Participants:This survey study used data on 9761 participants from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing who were followed up for a maximum of 10 years (mean [SD] follow-up, 6 [3.7] years). Discrete-time multistate life table models were used to estimate total life expectancy and life expectancy free of disability or chronic disease. Data were collected between March 2002 and March 2013 and analyzed from December 2018 to April 2019. Analyses were adjusted for wealth and cohabiting status. Main Outcomes and Measures:The main outcome was life expectancy free of disability and chronic disease. Affective well-being was assessed at baseline as a combination of enjoyment of life and the lack of significant depressive symptoms. Disability was measured in terms of impaired activities of daily living and instrumental activities of daily living, and chronic disease as the occurrence of 6 serious illnesses. Results:Data were analyzed from 9761 participants (5297 [54%] female; mean [SD] age at baseline, 64 [9.9] years). High affective well-being was associated with longer life expectancy and with longer disability-free and chronic disease-free life expectancies. For example, a woman aged 50 years who reported high affective well-being could expect to live 6 years longer than a woman of similar age with low well-being; 31.4 of her remaining years (95% CI, 30.5-31.9 years) would be likely to be free of disability, compared with 20.8 years (95% CI, 20.1-22.1 years) for a woman with low affective well-being. A man aged 50 years with high affective well-being could expect to live 20.8 years (95% CI, 18.7-22.4 years) without chronic disease, compared with 11.4 years (95% CI, 8.5-14.6 years) for a man reporting low well-being. Similar patterns were observed at the ages of 60, 70, and 80 years. Conclusions and Relevance:This study suggests that people who report high levels of subjective well-being live longer and also healthier lives than those with lower well-being. These findings add weight to endeavors to promote the subjective well-being of older people.

Dataset Information

Is Living Alone "Aging Alone"? Solitary Living, Network Types, and Well-Being.

Publications

Is Living Alone "Aging Alone"? Solitary Living, Network Types, and Well-Being.

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