Age-related changes in the associations of social network ties with mortality risk

Age-related changes in the associations of social network ties with mortali ty risk were investigated using data from the Terman Life-Cycle Study (L. M . Terman, 1925; L. M. Terman & M. H. Oden, 1947, 1959). Marital status, num ber of living children, number of living siblings, and number of group memb erships in 1940, 1950, 1960, and 1977 were reported across middle adulthood by 697 men and 544 women, with mortality follow-up as of 1991. Initial ana lyses confirmed previous work indicating that marital history (men only), n umber of children (both genders), and organizational memberships (both gend ers) are predictive of mortality risk. Further analyses compared the associ ations between these social ties and mortality prior to age 70 and at age 7 0 and older. Results indicated that for men, experiencing marital dissoluti on and subsequently remarrying is a stronger predictor of mortality risk pr ior to age 70 (p =.05), whereas for women, number of children (p <.05) is a stronger predictor of mortality risk after age 70. Implications of these a ge-related changes in social ties and mortality risk are discussed.