The Multifaceted Nature of Social Support in a Community Sample of Elderly Women

Forty‐three elderly women at two low‐income city nutrition sites participated in a study of social ties and social support. As predicted, discrete facets of support were differentiated from among a variety of social network and support variables. Age was negatively related to network size, amount of emotional support, and time spent with confidantes and relatives. With age controlled, the best predictors of life satisfaction were network size, frequency of church attendance, and proportion of network members considered intimates. Results are discussed with regard to the multidimensionality of the social support construct.