Homogeneity of Friendship Networks of Elderly Blacks and Whites

Race and sex were found to be the most salient parameters of friendship. Multivariate analyses revealed that blacks tend to have less homogeneous friendship networks than their white counterparts only in regard to marital status. How close respondents felt to their friends, on the average, was positively related to the level of age and sex homogeneity of the network. Respondent's education was positively related to all five types of homogeneity. It was found that the size theorem from Blau's primitive theory of social structure accounted for some of the findings. Exceptions were in race and education homogeneity, where discrimination and social distance figured into possible explanations.