Notes from SHARE conference (1): "Do social networks really matter?":

Howard Litwin, from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and coordinator of Social Networks in the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe, pointed that there is agreement on the importance of social networks for the subjective well-being of older adults but there is less agreement on how to measure social networks. They can be direct or indirectly measured by single or composite indicators. Usually, researchers measure the entire map of the whole network but it is costly and time consuming. For these reasons, most large population studies measure ego networks (personal) and who they have as their alter(s), Litwin said.

Researchers also use indirect measures as the role-relation orientation (married, e.g.) also called socio-demographic proxies, which had been used in the first and second wave of SHARE. Other indirect measures are social exchanges and social engagement ones. Besides, measures can be single or composite. The researcher sustained that social networks are best represented by unique combinations of individual networks indicators. In the wave 4 of SHARE, name generators were introduced to measure who are the people important in older adults’ life and, using this measure, Litwin found that 6% of people interviewed reported having no network at all.

SHARE data show that social network variables vary by region: while senior citizens of Mediterranean countries are more connected than non-Mediterranean ones, these exchange more than the formers outside the household. In addition, elderly people of Mediterranean countries report being lonelier than those from non-Mediterranean ones. Moreover, a much stronger positive association between loneliness and depression in non-Mediterranean countries suggest that loneliness means different things in different cultures, Litwin said. 

Almost all social networks variables (size, proximity, contact...) correlate with well-being but social network variables also vary through the life course: having a spouse if you are over 80 years is negative associated with well-being, while before 80 is positive associated. In sum, not only does matter who you are with but when in the life course and where in culture, Litwin stated.

In conclusion, the researcher pointed that social networks matter and differ in how we measure it, in the context and the status of the persons we are addressing.

In the Family and Social Networks panel sessions chaired by Litwin, Bettina Isengard from the University of Zurich wondered about how strong is intergenerational cohesion and measured it through functional solidarity, understood as the exchange of time, money or space.  She found that functional solidarity depends strongly on age, and that North countries are more willing to exchange money while South countries are more willing to exchange space (co residence). Besides, there is more exchange of money and less exchange of space and grandchildren care  in countries with a strong Welfare State. Moreover, those (people) who exchange money do not exchange space.
  
On the other hand, Christian Deindl from the University of Cologne talked about cohesion, social networks and late life health. While it is widely accepted that social networks are positive associated with health, Deindl results show that the characteristics of the network, like size and quality, also matter: smaller social networks are better for subjective health (?) and the quality of social networks (satisfaction) is especially important for the health. Finally, the question about causality remains open:  Is health causing social networks or are social networks causing health? 

However, we have to be careful when looking at the incidence of social networks in the health and well-being of older adults in Spain: Alda Azevedo, from Universidade de Lisboa, found that in Spain the size of the network was not significant for subjective health. Also, Litwin found almost no significant association of social network characteristics on the well-being of older adults of South countries but in the exchange of help inside and outside the household, and the association was negative. Moreover, frequency of contact with grandchildren is positive associated with well-being in all regions of Europe but in the South, where it has no significant association (Litwin in Phellas 2013:186). In Spain, in particular, social participation has no significative association with self-perceived health, an indicator of well-being, as Paula de Jerónimo, from Universidade de Lisboa, stated at the Active Ageing panel sessions.


Phellas, C.N., 2013. Aging in European Societies: Healthy Aging in Europe, Springer.

Soledad Caballero's  notes from 4th International SHARE users conference - Nov, 28-29, 2013 at HEC-Université de Liège - Belgium