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PubMed2001

The density of social networks and fertility decisions: evidence from South Nyanza district, Kenya.

Demographers have argued increasingly that social interaction is an important mechanism for understanding fertility behavior. Yet it is still quite uncertain whether social learning or social influence is the dominant mechanism through which social networks affect individuals' contraceptive decisions. In this paper we argue that these mechanisms can be distinguished by analyzing the density of the social network and its interaction with the proportion of contraceptive users among network partners. Our analyses indicate that social learning is most relevant with high market activity; in regions with only modest market activity, however, social influence is the dominant means by which social networks affect women's contraceptive use.

Birth Rate↗
PubMed1998

Personal social networks and HIV status among women on methadone.

This objective of this study was to examine the association between a women's HIV status and specific (IDUs) characteristics of her social networks with respect to (1) number of injection drug users (2) number of drug partners and (3) number of HIV-positive contacts in her personal networks, after controlling for the respondent's demographic characteristics and drug use. Participants were recruited through posted announcements in three methadone clinics in Harlem, New York City. Individuals were considered eligible if they were enrolled as patients in one of the clinics for at least three months. A social network questionnaire modeled after the General Social Survey network section was developed by the investigators. Face-to-face interviews were conducted by trained interviewers and included demographics, drug use, self-reported HIV status of the woman and her network members, and the social network structures. Univariate analyses found that HIV-positive and HIV-negative women had different network profiles. HIV-positive women were more likely to associate with a higher number of current drug users, injection drug users, injection drug users who were HIV-positive, drug partners, drug partners who used injection drugs, and drug partners who were HIV-positive. Multivariate analyses indicated that HIV-positive respondents were more likely to associate with HIV-positive network members than their HIV-negative counterparts. The findings suggest that to better understand the spread of HIV among female drug users and to design more effective HIV/AIDS prevention programmes, efforts should move beyond focusing on individual attributes to address the contextual dynamics of social networks.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Performance of an abbreviated version of the Lubben Social Network Scale among three European community-dwelling older adult populations.

PURPOSE: There is a need for valid and reliable short scales that can be used to assess social networks and social supports and to screen for social isolation in older persons. DESIGN AND METHODS: The present study is a cross-national and cross-cultural evaluation of the performance of an abbreviated version of the Lubben Social Network Scale (LSNS-6), which was used to screen for social isolation among community-dwelling older adult populations in three European countries. Based on the concept of lack of redundancy of social ties we defined clinical cut-points of the LSNS-6 for identifying persons deemed at risk for social isolation. RESULTS: Among all three samples, the LSNS-6 and two subscales (Family and Friends) demonstrated high levels of internal consistency, stable factor structures, and high correlations with criterion variables. The proposed clinical cut-points showed good convergent validity, and classified 20% of the respondents in Hamburg, 11% of those in Solothurn (Switzerland), and 15% of those in London as at risk for social isolation. IMPLICATIONS: We conclude that abbreviated scales such as the LSNS-6 should be considered for inclusion in practice protocols of gerontological practitioners. Screening older persons based on the LSNS-6 provides quantitative information on their family and friendship ties, and identifies persons at increased risk for social isolation who might benefit from in-depth assessment and targeted interventions.

Aged↗
PubMed2004

Attitudes in the social context: the impact of social network composition on individual-level attitude strength.

Four studies, using both experimental and correlational designs, explored the implications of being embedded within attitudinally congruent versus attitudinally heterogeneous social networks for individual-level attitude strength. Individuals embedded within congruent social networks (i.e., made up of others with similar views) were more resistant to attitude change than were individuals embedded within heterogeneous social networks (i.e., made up of others with a range of views). Mediational evidence suggests that attitudinally congruous social networks may increase attitude strength by decreasing attitudinal ambivalence and perhaps by increasing the certainty with which people hold their attitudes. These results suggest that features of the social context in which an attitude is held have important implications for individual-level attitude strength.

Attitude↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Social networks of schizophrenic patients three years after the first psychiatric hospitalization. Differences between a group treated in psychosocial program and patients treated in an individual treatment program].

Social networks of 54 DSM-III schizophrenic patients were studied. There are differences between social networks of patients who took part in the psychosocial program (n = 23) and social networks of patients treated in individual treatment program (n = 31). Patients treated in the psychosocial program receive significantly more social support from their social networks and there are significantly more new relationships in their networks than in the networks of patients treated in individual treatment program.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

Social network as a moderator in the relation between trauma exposure and trauma reaction: a survey among UN soldiers and relief workers.

Social network as a moderator between trauma exposure and post-trauma symptomatology was studied. Two samples--relief workers and UN soldiers--were assessed on trauma exposure, social network and three dependent measures related to post-trauma reactions. Regression analysis and interaction plots were used to determine the presence of interaction effects between trauma exposure and social network. All four network variables moderated the relationship between trauma exposure and post-trauma reactions among relief workers, while among UN soldiers only two such buffer effects were found. Furthermore, among UN soldiers one of these interaction effects was reversed, indicating social support to be important for those low on trauma exposure, while among relief workers support was important in the high-exposure condition. The results indicate a difference with respect to the importance of social network as a moderator between groups exposed to different kinds of war trauma. Differences in motivational systems may also exist. However, further research will have to establish this.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

Community membership and social networks in mental health self-help agencies.

This article explores community membership among self-help agency (SHA) participants. It is suggested that SHAs foster the enhancement of peer-oriented social networks, leading to the experience of shared community. Social network analysis was used to examine the structure of support mechanisms, and to assess levels of community membership through peer inclusion. Results indicate that both individual and organizational characteristics play roles in predicting peer presence in social networks. Organizational empowerment is a key factor, with the SHA emerging as a promising locus for peer support development through enhanced social networks. Implications for the organization of consumer-based services are discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

The social networks of seriously mentally ill persons receiving case management services.

Social network characteristics, or the patterning of one's social ties, are an important indicator of social support for persons with serious mental illness. Yet relatively few studies have been done on the particular network characteristics of clients receiving case management services in community settings. An understanding of the range of potential and actual social network contacts for persons with serious mental illness is important for targeting interventions to enhance their community supports. In this study, 125 clients of two urban community treatment teams were surveyed by case managers to determine their overall social network size, personal or support network size, and participation in any of 11 network clusters. Results of the study are presented with implications for the social functioning of persons with serious mental illness and suggestions for case manager interventions toward network expansion.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

[The social network of schizophrenic patients].

First, the literature is reviewed under three different perspectives: the role of social networks as etiological factor, the impact of the illness on the social relationships of the patients, and the influence of social networks on the course of schizophrenic disorders. Then, results of an empirical study of social relationships of schizophrenic patients, using the 'Interview Schedule for Social Interaction' developed by Henderson et al., are presented. Compared to the ideal norm as well as to normal people and other patient groups the social network of schizophrenic patients showed marked deficits.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Influence of social network on occurrence of dementia: a community-based longitudinal study.

BACKGROUND: Few data are available on the effect of social ties on dementia development. This study explored whether single social network components and different degrees of the social connections affect dementia incidence. METHODS: A community-based cohort of 1203 non-demented people, living at home in the Kungsholmen district of Stockholm, Sweden, and who had good cognition, was followed for an average period of 3 years. On the basis of medical and psychological data, 176 patients were diagnosed with dementia according to the criteria of the third edition revision of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Information on social network was obtained by personal interview by trained nurses at baseline. The covariates included in the analysis were age, sex, education, cognitive and functional status, depressive symptoms, and vascular diseases. FINDINGS: Those individuals living alone, and those without any close social ties, both had an adjusted relative risk for developing dementia of 1.5 (95% CI 1.0-2.1 and 1.0-2.4, respectively). Compared with married people living with someone, single people and those living alone had an adjusted relative risk of 1.9 (95% CI 1.2-3.1). Infrequent contacts with network resources did not increase the risk of the disease if such contacts were experienced as satisfying. When all components were combined in an index, a poor or limited social network increased the risk of dementia by 60% (95% CI 1.2-2.1), and a significant gradient was found for the four degrees of social connections (p=0.0009). INTERPRETATION: An extensive social network seems to protect against dementia. Confirmation of this finding and further investigation to clarify the mechanisms are worthwhile due to the implications for prevention.

Aged↗
PubMed2002

Women's social networks and child survival in Mali.

This paper explores the influence of women's social networks on child survival through a comparative investigation of two ethnic groups in Mali, West Africa. Data are drawn from a study of women's social networks and health conducted during the period 1996-97. Separate samples of 500 ever-married women aged 15-49 were surveyed at two geographically distinct sites representing Bamanan and Fulbe populations respectively. Consistent with known differences in economic risk, household structure, and cultural norms, descriptive analysis reveals a greater probability of child death among the Fulbe, and a larger mean size of total, material, practical and cognitive networks among the Bamanan. Cox regression models are used to examine the association between social network size, function and composition and the odds of child death (1-5 years). Among the various biological, household and community-level variables tested in the basic model, spacing exerts an expected negative effect on the odds of child death in both groups, while household SES predicts child survival only among Fulbe children. When variables representing the educational and psychosocial attributes of the mother are included, no effects are detected in either group. Controlling for these factors, the size of total, practical, cognitive and emotional networks are found to significantly increase the odds of child survival among the Fulbe only. Compositional variables, such as the extent to which natal kin, non-kin or husbands figure in a woman's network, nor the degree to which networks are located within household yield any significant results for the Fulbe. Among Bamanan women, however, the higher the proportion of network members living in the household, the lower the odds of child death. The paper concludes by discussing the methodological, conceptual and practical implications of these findings.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Control of epidemic early syphilis: the results of an intervention campaign using social networks.

BACKGROUND: During an epidemic of early syphilis, social networks were used for an intervention campaign. GOAL OF THIS STUDY: To characterize the epidemic and describe the yield of new cases from index-case interviews. METHODS: Analyses of morbidity data collected by the Montgomery County, Alabama, sexually transmitted disease program determined the course of the epidemic and characterized the new case yields from social networks identified via index-case interviews (partner notification investigations) and interviews with sex partners and their associates (cluster investigations). Results and costs were compared to a noncampaign period. RESULTS: The number of reported syphilis cases nearly doubled from 1990 to 1991 (201 to 348 per 100,000 residents). During the 21-week campaign, 373 case-patients had partner notification/cluster investigations; 113 (11%) of 984 sex partners and 41 (3%) of 1,146 high-risk associates (persons identified during cluster investigations) had syphilis. No subgroup of case-patients for which the partner notification/cluster investigation yielded more infected persons than other subgroups was identified. The cost per case detected was more than twice that during a noncampaign period ($1,627 vs. $771). CONCLUSION: Partner notification investigations yielded more infected persons than cluster investigations. Further evaluation is needed to determine the role of intense partner notification/cluster investigators' efforts in the control of epidemic syphilis.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Social networks and psychiatric morbidity in New Zealand women.

A random community survey of urban and rural New Zealand women revealed higher rates of psychiatric morbidity in subjects who reported poorer social support. Substantial differences in social networks were found between demographic subgroups. Rural women described better than expected social relationships, giving some support to the pastoral ideal of well integrated rural communities. Women in part-time employment also described better social networks. Elderly, low socio-economic, and widowed, separated and divorced women had poorer social relationships. It is suggested that normative values for social network measures for each demographic subgroup will need to be established before the clinical significance of deviations from the norm can be meaningfully evaluated. Also, the mechanisms linking social networks to health may vary in different subgroups.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

An exploration of the role of social networks in cardiovascular risk reduction.

OBJECTIVE: To identify and describe the role of social networks in influencing individual wellness motivation within the context of cardiac rehabilitation. DESIGN: A naturalistic design was used in the collection and analysis of inductively generated data. SAMPLE: Twenty-four individuals who were participating in an outpatient cardiac rehabilitation program. Of the 24 subjects sampled, 17 were men and seven were women. The respondents' ages ranged from 38 to 79 years, with a mean age of 58 years. At the time of the study, informants had been involved in cardiac rehabilitation for an average length of 10 weeks. RESULTS: Two primary categories were identified that describe informant perception of the role of social networks in motivating health behavior change: enabling and limiting. Subcategories identified were consistent with the general types of support described in social support literature (emotional, feedback, problem solving, instrumental), as well as behaviors found to diminish motivation in cardiovascular health behavior (value conflict, boundary maintenance). CONCLUSIONS: Findings from this study provide a better understanding of the role of social networks in motivating health behavior change within the contest of cardiac rehabilitation.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed2006

Sex partner selection, social networks, and repeat sexually transmitted infections in young men: a preliminary report.

GOAL: The goal of this study was to examine the risk for repeat sexually transmitted infections (STIs) associated with reducing the number of sex partners who come from within the social networks of males 13 to 25 years old in Baltimore, Maryland, and Denver, Colorado. STUDY: Asymptomatic males diagnosed with chlamydia and/or gonorrhea as part of an asymptomatic chlamydia and gonorrhea male screening project were recruited and interviewed about their sexual behaviors and their perceptions of social characteristics and sexual behaviors of their sex partners. We characterized the sex partners of each participant as belonging to or not belonging to his social network. We examined whether a decrease in percentage of sex partners who were in the participant's social network was associated with repeat infection. RESULTS: There were 47 participants in Baltimore and 92 in Denver. In both cities, there was a trend toward a finding that decreasing the percentage of sex partners belonging to a participant's social network was protective for repeat STI. CONCLUSION: These data suggest that interventions may need to be designed to reduce the prevalence of infection in the social networks of infected men.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Associations between the mental health and social networks of children and parents in single-parent families. A comparison between a clinical group and a control group.

The parents and children in single-parent families were studied. A group of 39 children ages 9-16 years who had been patients at a child and adolescent psychiatric clinic and a control group with an equal number of children were interviewed together with their single parent regarding social network and mental health. The networks of children and parents in the control group were more similar to each other than the networks of parents and children in the patient group. The crosswise influence of parents' mental health, children's behavioral disturbances and social networks showed associations between parents' mental health and children's behavioural disturbances, between parents's social networks and children's behavioural disturbances and between parents' mental health and their social networks. There was, on the other hand, no association between parents' mental health and the social networks of their children.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

Social network interaction and mortality. A six year follow-up study of a random sample of the Swedish population.

This study examined the relationship between social network interaction and total and cardiovascular mortality in 17,433 Swedish men and women between the ages of 29 and 74 during a 6 year follow-up period. The study group was interviewed concerning their social network interactions and a total score was formed which summarized the availability of social contact. A number of sociodemographic and health related background variables known to be associated with mortality risk were also considered. Mortality was examined by linking the interview material with the Swedish National Mortality Registry. In the 6-year follow-up period 841 deaths occurred. The crude relative risk of dying during this period was 3.7 (95% CL 3.2; 4.3) when the lower social network tertile was compared to the upper two tertiles. When controlling for potential confounding effects, only age had a major influence on the association between social network interaction and mortality (RR age-adjusted = 1.46, 95% CL 1.25; 1.72). Controlling for age and sex, age and educational level, age and employment status, age and immigrant status, age and smoking, age and exercise habits and age and chronic disease at interview left the relative risk virtually unchanged. Controlling simultaneously for age, smoking, exercise and chronic illness yielded a risk estimate of 1.36 (95% CL 1.06; 1.69). Similar results were obtained when separately analyzing for cardiovascular disease mortality in an identical manner.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Social networks and quality of life among female long-term colorectal cancer survivors.

BACKGROUND: The population of long-term colorectal cancer survivors in the United States continues to increase, but little is known about how they fare-physically, mentally, or socially-in the years after diagnosis. The current study examines female long-term colorectal cancer survivors' health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in relation to social networks. METHODS: A population-based sample of female colorectal cancer survivors (n = 726) residing in Wisconsin was recontacted approximately 9 years after the initial diagnosis. Of 443 women who were alive in 1999, 307 women completed a follow-up questionnaire. Analysis was conducted on 259 participants who completed the Medical Outcomes Study Short Form 36 Health Status Survey and a modified version of Berkman and Syme's Social Network Index. Using multivariate analyses, HRQoL summary scores were tested for associations with individual and composite measures of social networks, including marital/partner status; number of children, relatives, and friends; and the frequency of religious and community participation. RESULTS: After adjusting for age, extent of disease at diagnosis, number of comorbidities, body mass, and education, HRQoL was similar to norms published for the general population. Individual social network measures (including the number of relatives and friends) and composite network measures (including network size, the number of ties seen at least once per month, and overall social connectedness) were associated positively with mental health. CONCLUSIONS: Social networks may have an important relation with HRQoL-particularly mental health-among female long-term colorectal cancer survivors. The results of this study should be of interest to those seeking to understand or improve HRQoL among this growing population.

Adult↗