The Gerontologist, Vol 34, Issue 1 79-87, Copyright © 1994 by The Gerontological Society of America

ARTICLES

Constraints and facilitators to friendships in late late life

CL Johnson and LE Troll
Medical Anthropology Program, University of California, San Francisco 94143-0850.

This report analyzes friendship patterns of individuals 85 and older, 77% of whom are women. Despite high levels of disability and the loss of age peers, the majority were in frequent contact with friends and still had a close friend. Over 31 months, however, the predictors of friendship involvement changed. At Time 1, mood was most important, but by Time 3, increased disability was most important. Qualitative data describe how the constraints and facilitators lead to changing criteria for friendships in late late life.

This article has been cited by other articles:

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				R. G. ADAMS and R. BLIESZNER Aging Well With Friends and Family American Behavioral Scientist, November 1, 1995; 39(2): 209 - 224.