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Health as status? Network relations and social structure in an American retirement community

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 September 2014

MARKUS H. SCHAFER
MARKUS H. SCHAFER*
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology, University of Toronto, Canada.
*
Address for correspondence: Markus Schafer, Department of Sociology, University of Toronto, 725 Spadina Ave., Toronto, ON, Canada, M5S 2J4. E-mail: markus.schafer@utoronto.ca
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Abstract

This study examines social ties within a community of retirement residents to examine how health influences patterns of social interaction. Drawing from a social fields perspective, I anticipated that health would emerge as a key form of status. I hypothesised that this would manifest in the healthiest residents receiving a disproportionate share of social tie nominations, and that the network would be characterised by distinct patterns of health-based sorting. Exponential random graph models were used to disentangle individual, dyadic and higher-order influences on reports of interaction. Findings support the main hypotheses, pointing to the importance of health as a basis of micro-level social structure in contexts where it is a scarce and valued resource. I urge further research to trace out these implications in other unique settings.

Keywords

social networksretirement communityhealthstatushomophilysocial fields
Type
Articles
Information
Ageing & Society , Volume 36 , Issue 1 , January 2016 , pp. 79 - 105
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2014 

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