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Social Relations and Aging

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Part of the book series: Handbooks of Sociology and Social Research ((HSSR))

Abstract

Studies dating back to Emile Durkheim’s (1897) Suicide demonstrate that social relationships ­provide emotional, social, and economic supports that enhance physical and emotional well-being throughout the life course (House et al. 1988). Over the past three decades, however, researchers have discovered that social relationships are not universally protective for late-life well-being; rather, the protective effects of social ties vary based on the structure, nature, and quality of the relationship. Methodological advances also have enabled researchers to ascertain whether the association between relationships and health reflects social causation (i.e., direct benefits of social relationships), or selection (i.e., characteristics of those people who form and maintain relationships over the life course). Social gerontologists no longer ask, “Do social relationships affect the well-being of older adults?” Rather, they now ask, “Why, how, when, and for whom do social relations affect the health of older adults?”

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology and Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, USA

    Deborah Carr

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  1. Deborah Carr
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  2. Sara M. Moorman
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Correspondence to Deborah Carr .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Human Development and Family Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, 97331-2302, Oregon, USA

    Richard A. Settersten

  2. Dept. Sociology, University of Texas, Austin, University Station 1, Austin, 78712, Texas, USA

    Jacqueline L. Angel

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Carr, D., Moorman, S.M. (2011). Social Relations and Aging. In: Settersten, R., Angel, J. (eds) Handbook of Sociology of Aging. Handbooks of Sociology and Social Research. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-7374-0_10

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