The Social Support Functions of Siblings in Later Life

Social support networks of older adults have received much attention lately, as they are viewed as patterns of continuous ties and interchanges of assistance that play a significant role in maintaining the psychological, social, and physical integrity of old people over time (Cantor and Little, 1985). However, most gerontological research has focused on the support functions of a spouse or adult child. This is a rather limited view of the older adult's social support network given that many older adults do not have a living spouse (Watkins et al., 1987), children can often provide only a little support (Cicirelli, 1981), and with increasing age, adults show an increased preference for social contact with age peers over younger individuals (Hochschild, 1978; Johnson, 1983a). Social gerontologists now recognize the need for research that delineates the dimensions of age-peer relationships associated with enhanced well-being of older adults (Johnson, 1983b) and that specifically focuses on the functions of siblings (Cantor and Little, 1985). The discussion presented here is an integration of the empirical and theoretical literature regarding the social support functions of siblings in later life and a formulation of an explanatory theory to guide the research in this area.