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Is having an educationally diverse social network good for health?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 May 2020

Mark C. Pachucki Open the ORCID record for Mark C. Pachucki [Opens in a new window]  and
Diego F. Leal Open the ORCID record for Diego F. Leal [Opens in a new window]
Mark C. Pachucki*
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology, Computational Social Science Institute, University of Massachusetts-Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA
Diego F. Leal
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA (e-mail: leald@mailbox.sc.edu)
*
*Corresponding author. Email: mpachucki@umass.edu
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Abstract

While network research often focuses on social integration as a predictor of health, a less-explored idea is that connections to dissimilar others may benefit well-being. As such, this study investigates whether network diversity is associated with changes in four health outcomes over a 3-year period of time in the U.S.A. Specifically, we focus on how an underexplored measure of network diversity—educational attainment assortativity—is associated with common self-reported outcomes: propensity to exercise, body-mass index, mental health, and physical health. We extend prior research by conducting multilevel analyses using this measure of diversity while adjusting for a range of socio-demographic and network confounders. Data are drawn from a longitudinal probability sample of U.S. adults (n=10.679) in which respondents reported information about themselves and eight possible alters during three yearly surveys (2013–2015). We find, first, that higher educational attainment is associated with more educationally insular networks, while less-educated adults have more educationally diverse networks. Results further suggest that having educationally similar networks is associated with higher body-mass index among the less educated. Further exploration of the relationship between ego network diversity, tie strength, and health is warranted.

Keywords

egocentric networkshealthnetwork diversityassortativity
Type
Research Article
Information
Network Science , Volume 8 , Issue 3: Special Issue Ego Networks , September 2020 , pp. 418 - 444
Copyright
© Cambridge University Press 2020

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Footnotes

Special Issue Editors: Brea L. Perry, Bernice A. Pescosolido, Mario L. Small, and Ann McCranie

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