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The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences Advance Access originally published online on October 9, 2009
The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences 2009 64B(6):713-722; doi:10.1093/geronb/gbp075
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© The Author 2009. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org.

Social Network Types and Subjective Well-being in Chinese Older Adults

Sheung-Tak Cheng1, Coty K. L. Lee1, Alfred C. M. Chan2, Edward M. F. Leung3 and Jik-Joen Lee4

1 Department of Applied Social Studies, City University of Hong Kong, China
2 Asia-Pacific Institute of Ageing Studies, Lingnan University, Hong Kong, China
3 United Christian Hospital, Hong Kong, China
4 Department of Social Work, Chinese University of Hong Kong, China

Address correspondence to Sheung-Tak Cheng, PhD, Department of Psychological Studies, Hong Kong Institute of Education, 10 Lo Ping Road, Tai Po, N.T., Hong Kong, China. Email: takcheng{at}ied.edu.hk.


  Abstract

The study examined social network types in a sample of 1,005 older Chinese adults in Hong Kong and the networks’ relations to subjective well-being. Given the nature of kinship in Chinese society, we broke down social support provision by closeness of blood ties (immediate kin, distant kin, and non-kin). Using K-means cluster analysis, we identified 5 network types: diverse, friend focused, restricted, family focused, and distant family. The latter was characterized by few immediate kin but mostly distant kin. Diverse and family-focused networks were most beneficial to well-being, whereas restricted networks were least. Distant family networks were associated with only marginally lower well-being than family-focused networks and were comparable to friend-focused networks. Results suggested the importance of the extended family in support provision for Chinese older adults, especially in the absence of immediate kin and friends. Implications of the present findings for other cultural groups are discussed.

Key Words: Social network • Kinship • Subjective well-being • Elderly • Hong Kong Chinese

Received December 15, 2008; Accepted August 7, 2009

Decision Editor: Rosemary Blieszner, PhD


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