Abstract
An increasing body of research has used the concept of social capital to explain health and well-being inequalities. Still, relatively few studies have specifically focused on older people. Our prime interest in this chapter concerns the concepts of social capital and mental well-being and the meaning of social capital for mental well-being in terms of absence of loneliness in older people. We focus on two commonly used aspects of social capital, structural and cognitive, and their association with loneliness by analyzing the European Social Survey data for three countries. Our analyses suggest that there are differences in social capital, in terms of social contacts and trust, and loneliness between Finland, Poland, and Spain. In general, older people in Finland report lower levels of loneliness and higher levels of social capital. The level of loneliness tends to be lower with high levels of social capital; however, this association differs between the studied countries. The findings are discussed within the framework of active and healthy ageing policies and welfare state regime contexts.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
For more information visit http://ec.europa.eu/active-healthy-ageing.
- 2.
For further details of ESS sampling methodology and survey design, see http://www.europeansocialsurvey.org/.
- 3.
These countries have also been analyzed within the COURAGE in Europe project (http://www.courageproject.eu/).
References
Almedon AM (2005) Social capital and mental health: an interdisciplinary review of primary evidence. Soc Sci Med 61(5):943–964
Bech P, Olsen LR, Kjoller M, Rasmussen NK (2003) Measuring well-being rather than the absence of distress symptoms: a comparison of the SF-36 Mental Health subscale and the WHO-Five Well-Being Scale. Int J Method Psychiatr Res 12(2):85–91
Bishop AJ, Martin P (2011) The measurement of life satisfaction and happiness in old-old age. In: Poon LW, Cohen-Mansfield J (eds) Understanding well-being in the oldest old. Cambridge University Press, New York, pp 290–331
Bourdieu P (1986) The forms of social capital. In: Richardson J (ed) Handbook of theory and research for the sociology of education. Greenwood, New York, pp 241–248
Bowling A (2009) The psychometric properties of the older people’s Quality of Life questionnaire, compared with CASP-19 and the WHOQOL-OLD. Curr Gerontol Geriatr Res 2009:Article ID 298950, 12p. doi:10.1155/2009/298950. www.hindawi.com/journals/cggr/2009/298950.abs.htm
Bowling A, Gabriel Z (2007) Lay theories of quality of life in older age. Ageing Soc 27(6):827–848
De Silva MJ, McKenzie K, Harpham T, Huttly SRA (2005) Social capital and mental illness: a systematic review. J Epidemiol Community Health 59(8):619–627
Department of Health (2009) New horizons: a shared vision for mental health. Department of Health, Mental Health Division, London
Department of Health (DoH) (2012) Loneliness measure to boost care for older people. http://socialcarebulletin.dh.gov.uk/2012/11/22/loneliness-measure-to-boost-care-for-older-people/. Accessed 9 Aug 2013
Dykstra PA (2009) Older adult loneliness: myths and realities. Eur J Ageing 6:91–100
Esping-Andersen G (1990) The three worlds of welfare capitalism. Polity Press, Cambridge
European Commission (2010) EUROPE 2020: a strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. http://ec.europa.eu/commission_2010-2014/president/news/documents/pdf/20100303_1_en.pdf. Accessed 9 Sept 2013
Ferrera M (1996) The ‘southern’ model of welfare in social Europe. J Eur Soc Policy 6:17–37
FUTURAGE (2011) A road map for European ageing research. http://futurage.group.shef.ac.uk/roadmap.html. Accessed 9 Aug 2013
Health Education Authority (1997) Mental health promotion: a quality framework. Health Education Authority, London
NHS Health Scotland (2010) Mental health improvement programme: background and policy context. http://www.healthscotland.com/mental-health-background.aspx. Accessed 9 Aug 2013
Hooghe M, Stolle D (2003) Generating social capital: civil society and institutions in comparative perspective. Palgrave Macmillan, New York
Hu Y, Stewart-Brown S, Twigg L, Weich S (2007) Can the 12-item General Health Questionnaire be used to measure positive mental health? Psychol Med 37(7):1005–1013
Islam MK, Merlo J, Kawachi I, Lindstrom M, Gerdtham U (2006) Social capital and health: does egalitarianism matter? A literature review. Int J Equity Health 5:3. doi:10.1186/1475-9276-5-3
Jahoda M (1958) Current concepts of positive mental health. Basic Books, New York
Jenkins R, Meltzer H, Jones PB et al (2008) Mental health: future challenges. Foresight Mental Capital and Wellbeing Project, London
Jylhä M, Jokela J (1990) Individual experiences as cultural: a cross-cultural study on loneliness among the elderly. Ageing Soc 10:295–315
Kawachi I, Subramanian SV, Kim D (2008) Social capital and health: a decade of progress and beyond. In: Kawachi I, Subramanian SV, Kim D (eds) Social capital and health. Springer, New York, pp 1–26
Keyes CLM, Shmotkin D, Ryff CD (2002) Optimizing well-being: the empirical encounter of two traditions. J Pers Soc Psychol 82(6):1007–1022
Keyes CLM, Dhingra SS, Simoes EJ (2010a) Change in level of positive mental health as a predictor of future risk of mental illness. Am J Public Health 100(12):2366–2371
Keyes CLM, Myers JM, Kendler KS (2010b) The structure of the genetic and environmental influence on mental well-being. Am J Public Health 100(12):2379–2384
Kim D, Subramanian SV, Kawachi I (2008) Social capital and physical health: a systematic review of the literature. In: Kawachi I, Subramanian SV, Kim D (eds) Social capital and health. Springer, New York, pp 139–190
Kirkwood T, Bond J, May C, McKeith I, Teh M (2008) Mental capital through life: future challenges. Foresight Mental Capital and Wellbeing Project, London
Koponen HJ, Viilo K, Hakko H, Timonen M, Meyer-Rochow VB, Sarkioja T, Rasanen P (2007) Rates and previous disease history in old age suicide. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry 22(1):38–46
Kumlin S, Rothstein B (2005) Making and breaking social capital: the impact of welfare-state institutions. Comp Polit Stud 38(4):339–365
Lamers SMA, Westerhof GJ, Bohlmeijer ET, ten Klooster PM, Keyes CLM (2011) Evaluating the psychometric properties of the Mental Health Continuum-Short Form (MHC-SF). J Clin Psychol 67(1):99–110
Lavikainen J, Fryers T, Lehtinen V (2006) Improving mental health information in Europe. Proposal of the MINDFUL project. National Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health, Helsinki
Lehtinen V (2008) Building up good mental health. Guidelines based on existing knowledge. STAKES, Jyvaskyla
Litwin H (2010) Social networks and well-being: a comparison of older people in Mediterranean and Non-Mediterranean countries. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 65B(5):599–608
Luhmann M, Hofmann W, Eid M, Lucas RE (2012) Subjective well-being and adaptation to life events: a meta-analysis. J Pers Soc Psychol 102(3):592–615
NICE (2008) Occupational therapy interventions and physical activity interventions to promote the mental wellbeing of older people in primary care and residential care. National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, London
Nummela O, Seppanen M, Uutela A (2011) The effects of loneliness and change in loneliness on self-rated health (SRH): a longitudinal study among aging people. Arch Gerontol Geriatr 53:163–167
Nyqvist F, Cattan M, Andersson L, Forsman AK, Gustafson Y (2013a) Social capital and loneliness among the very old living at home and institutional settings: a comparative study. J Aging Health 22:1013–1035
Nyqvist F, Forsman AK, Giuntoli G, Cattan M (2013b) Social capital as a resource for mental well-being in older people: a systematic review. Aging Ment Health. doi:10.1080/13607863.2012.742490
O’Luanaigh C, Lawlor B (2008) Loneliness and the health of older people. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry 23:1213–1221
Pichler F, Wallace C (2007) Patterns of formal and informal social capital in Europe. Eur Sociol Rev 23(4):423–435
Poortinga W (2006) Social capital: an individual or collective resource for health? Soc Sci Med 62(2):292–302
Putnam RD (2000) Bowling alone: the collapse and revival of American community. Simon & Schuster, New York
Rostila M (2013) Social capital and health inequality in European welfare states. Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke
Ryff CD (1989) Happiness is everything—or is it? Explorations on the meaning of psychological well-being. J Pers Soc Psychol 57(6):1069–1081
Ryff CD, Keyes CLM (1995) The structure of psychological well-being revisited. J Pers Soc Psychol 69(4):719–727
Scharf T, De Jong Gierveld J (2008) Loneliness in urban neighbourhoods: an Anglo-Dutch comparison. Eur J Ageing 5:103–115
Stephens C, Alpass F, Towers A, Stevenson B (2011) The effects of types of social networks, perceived social support, and loneliness on the health of older people: accounting for the social context. J Aging Health 23(6):887–911
Steptoe A, Shankar A, Demkakos P, Wardle J (2013) Social isolation, loneliness and all-cause mortality in older men and women. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 110(15):5797–5801
Stewart-Brown S, Tennant A, Tennant R, Platt S, Parkinson J, Weich S (2009) Internal construct validity of the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS): a Rasch analysis using data from the Scottish Health Education Population Survey. Health Qual Life Outcomes 7:1–8
Sundström G, Fransson E, Malmberg B, Davey A (2009) Loneliness among older Europeans. Eur J Ageing 6(4):267–275
van Oorschot W (2006) Social capital in Europe: measurement and social and regional distribution of a multifaceted phenomenon. Acta Sociol 49:149–167
Victor C, Scambler S, Bond J (2009) The social world of older people: understanding loneliness and social isolation in later life. Open University Press/McGraw-Hill, Maidenhead
Walker A, Maltby T (2012) Active ageing: a strategic policy solution to demographic ageing in the European Union. Int J Soc Sec Welf 21:S117–S130
Woolcock M (2001) The place of social capital in understanding social and economic outcomes. Can J Policy Res 2(1):11–17
World Health Organization (2002) Active ageing: a policy framework. Ageing Lifecourse. http://whqlibdoc.who.int/hq/2002/WHO_NMH_NPH_02.8.pdf. Accessed 12 Aug 2013
World Health Organization (2004) Promoting mental health. Concepts, emerging evidence, practice. Summary report. World Health Organization, Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse in collaboration with the Victorian Health Promotion Foundation and the University of Melbourne. http://www.who.int/mental_health/evidence/en/promoting_mhh.pdf. Accessed 19 March 2012
World Health Organization (2007/2011) What is mental health? http://www.who.int/features/qa/62/en/index.html. Accessed 13 Nov 2011
World Health Organization (2011) Mental health: a state of well-being. http://www.who.int/features/factfiles/mental_health/en/index.htmlWHO. Accessed 19 March 2012
Yang K, Victor C (2011) Age and loneliness in 25 European nations. Ageing Soc 31:1368–1388
Acknowledgments
The work by Fredrica Nyqvist was supported by the Academy of Finland (grant number 250054) as part of the FLARE-2 programme. We would like to thank Gunborg Jakobsson for her helpful comments and suggestions on earlier draft of this chapter.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2014 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Nyqvist, F., Cattan, M. (2014). Social Capital, Mental Well-Being, and Loneliness in Older People. In: Leist, A., Kulmala, J., Nyqvist, F. (eds) Health and Cognition in Old Age. International Perspectives on Aging, vol 10. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-06650-9_18
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-06650-9_18
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-06649-3
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-06650-9
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and LawSocial Sciences (R0)