Friendships in Later Life: Definitions and Maintenance Patterns

1989 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen A. Roberto ◽  
Priscilla J. Kimboko
Keyword(s):  
Gender Differences ◽  
Older Women ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Older Men ◽  
Close Friend ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Older Men And Women

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.

scholarly journals MEN’S GENDER CAPITAL EXPERIENCES IN LATER LIFE

2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 81-101
Author(s):  
Marta Gregorčič ◽  
Kaja Cizelj
Keyword(s):  
Older Women ◽  
Life Experiences ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Older Men ◽  
Health Issues ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Depth Interviews ◽  
Work And Health ◽  
Gender Capital

Over the last decade there have been substantial advances in understanding the gendered dimensions of ageing. Prior studies have mostly dealt with understanding the lives of older women while largely neglecting or omitting older men. The focus on women facing disadvantages in socio-economic and marital status has shifted to men’s post-work and health issues in the last few decades, and only recently to masculinities and gender capital in later life. Contemporary discussions on cultural and gender capital bring relevant recognition and somehow unintentionally reveal that gender can matter to the same extent or even more in old age than in childhood or adulthood. This article analyses the results of semi-structured in-depth interviews with 98 men aged 60 or more and other data collected in Slovenia as part of the Old Guys Erasmus+ project. The project results are in line with recent studies on gender capital and masculinities, and justify why older men should be seen, discussed and examined as individual agents who practice, perform and produce gender in later life too. They also explain why hegemonic masculinity is only one aspect of gendered life experiences and that different masculine realities stand alongside each other and are as necessary for men in later life as femininities are for women, particularly in contemporary societies where both aged men and women are seen and represented as de-gendered, un-gendered or even genderless.

Self-image and intergenerational relationships as correlates of life satisfaction in Chinese older adults: will gender make a difference?

2017 ◽  
Vol 38 (7) ◽  
pp. 1502-1519 ◽  
Author(s):  
XUE BAI ◽  
YU GUO ◽  
YUAN YUAN FU
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Gender Differences ◽  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Intergenerational Relationships ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Older Men ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Self Image ◽  
Older Men And Women

ABSTRACTPromoting life satisfaction in later life has long been both a policy and practice challenge. This study examined the association between older adults' self-image and life satisfaction, and that between their intergenerational relationships and life satisfaction. Given that sources of wellbeing for older men and women may vary due to socially constructed realities in early life, gender differences were also investigated in the correlates of life satisfaction. A face-to-face questionnaire survey was conducted in 2014 with a sample of 1,099 older adults aged 60 years and over from four cities in China. Findings of this study showed that older adults’ self-image and intergenerational relationships were significantly associated with their life satisfaction after controlling for certain socio-demographic characteristics, and health and self-care ability. The correlates of life satisfaction were shown to differ between older men and women. Programmes and Services should be developed for older adults to explore and identify positive aspects of themselves, to improve their relationships with their adult children, and to foster a more positive image of ageing in wider society. In addition, service providers should take gender differences in correlates of life satisfaction into account in service and intervention programme development.

scholarly journals Key Life Differences for Older Men and Women

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 63-70
Author(s):  
Dmitriy V. Savchenko ◽  
◽  
Svetlana N. Tereshchuk ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Older Women ◽  
Rank Correlation ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Older Men ◽  
Spearman Rank Correlation ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Spearman Rank ◽  
Difference Criterion ◽  
Older Men And Women ◽  
Spearman Rank Correlation Coefficient

This article examines the issue of gender differences in attitudes towards life in older people. The study found that older women are more positive about life than men. To process the research results, such methods of mathematical statistics as the Spearman rank correlation coefficient and the Mann– Whitney difference criterion were used. Based on the results of the work carried out, recommendations were formulated for specialists working with the elderly.

Life satisfaction among older people in Italy in a gender approach

2014 ◽  
Vol 35 (7) ◽  
pp. 1481-1504 ◽  
Author(s):  
SILVIA MEGGIOLARO ◽  
FAUSTA ONGARO
Keyword(s):  
Gender Differences ◽  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Older People ◽  
Living Arrangements ◽  
Older Men ◽  
Living Alone ◽  
Ageing Population ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Older Men And Women

ABSTRACTOver the last few decades, increasing attention has been paid to the issue of wellbeing among older people, and life satisfaction has been used as an indicator to evaluate older people's life conditions. This paper sheds some light on this topic with reference to Italy, a country characterised by an increasing ageing population. The aim is to examine life satisfaction among people aged 65 and older and its predictors. We adopt a gender approach to examine whether – as suggested by the literature – older men and women have different sources of satisfaction. We test this hypothesis in Italy, a country still characterised by an unbalanced public and private gender system. In doing this, we also control whether living arrangements – specifically living alone – influence the determinants of life satisfaction of older men and women. The data used are from the cross-sectional surveys ‘Aspects of Daily Life’, undertaken in Italy by the National Statistical Institute. The results do not show clear gender differences in the determinants of life satisfaction, with only some slight gender differences among those living alone. This suggests that the social and cultural environment may play a relevant role for older people's life satisfaction.

Intimacy and Ageing

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Torbjörn Bildtgård ◽  
Peter Öberg
Keyword(s):  
New Technologies ◽  
Late Life ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Older Men ◽  
Intimate Relationship ◽  
Western World ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Avant Garde ◽  
Ways Of Being ◽  
Older Men And Women

To repartner in later life is increasingly common in large parts of the Western world. This book addresses the gap in knowledge about late life repartnering and provides a comprehensive map of the changing landscape of late life intimacy. The book examines the changing structural conditions of intimacy and ageing in late modernity. How do longer lives, changing norms and new technologies affect older people’s relationship careers, their attitudes to repartnering and the formation of new relationships? Which forms do these new unions take? What does a new intimate relationship offer older men and women and what are the consequences for social integration? What is the role and meaning of sex? By introducing a gains-perspective the book challenges stereotypes of old age as a period of loss and decline. It also challenges the image of older people as conservative, and instead present them as an avant-garde that often experiment with new ways of being together.

Older men and women reflect on changes in sexual functioning in later life

2019 ◽  
pp. 1-21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liat Ayalon ◽  
Ateret Gewirtz-Meydan ◽  
Inbar Levkovich ◽  
Khaled Karkabi
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Functioning ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Older Men ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Older Men And Women

Conversations between Older Men and Women: Turn-Taking and Topics

1996 ◽  
Vol 83 (3_suppl) ◽  
pp. 1330-1330 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Martin ◽  
Priscilla Davis ◽  
Jess Dancer
Keyword(s):  
Older Women ◽  
Older Men ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Turn Taking ◽  
Older Men And Women

Five dyads of older men paired with older women were compared on the pragmatic variables of turn-taking and topicalization. Men talked longer and more often while women served to reinforce and maintain the conversational topics.

Social Relationships and Inflammatory Markers in the MIDUS Cohort: The Role of Age and Gender Differences

2017 ◽  
Vol 30 (6) ◽  
pp. 904-923 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ari J. Elliot ◽  
Kathi L. Heffner ◽  
Christopher J. Mooney ◽  
Jan A. Moynihan ◽  
Benjamin P. Chapman
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Gender Differences ◽  
Older Women ◽  
Social Relationships ◽  
The United States ◽  
Age And Gender ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Reactive Protein ◽  
Age And Gender Differences ◽  
And Gender

Objective: To better understand age and gender differences in associations of social relationships with chronic inflammation. Method: Using a sample of middle-aged and older adults ( N = 963) from the Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS) biomarker project, we examined interactions of age and gender with structural and functional social network measures in predicting interleukin-6 (IL-6) and C-reactive protein (CRP). Results: Significant interactions involving age and gender showed that social support was associated with lower IL-6 in older women, whereas perceived positive relationships and social integration were related to lower IL-6 in both men and women of advanced age. Functional measures were associated with higher CRP in both men and women after adjustment for health conditions and behaviors, with some further variation by age. Discussion: Greater social support may be related to lower IL-6 in older women. Further research is needed to understand observed associations of social support with higher CRP.

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