Abstract
The purposes of this study were to derive empirical types of social support networks in a sample of 1000 community-dwelling, older Koreans 65 years of age or older and examine which types of social support network are associated with a lower risk of depressive symptoms. Depressive symptom was assessed using the Korean version of the Geriatric Depression Scale-Short Form. Using K-means cluster analysis, we identified 4 social support network types: friend, family, restricted, and diverse. Multivariate linear regression analysis revealed that diverse and family support networks were protective against depressive symptoms, whereas restricted support networks were least. Encouraging older people to develop a variety of social support networks with family and friends may help prevent depressive symptoms in the community-dwelling elderly. These findings extended prior studies and provided valuable information on how to prevent depressive symptoms of the community-dwelling elderly.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
