"Why Can't a Man Be More Like a Woman?": Marital Status and Social Networking of Older Men

Abstract

Research indicates older lone men have an elevated risk of social isolation, but there has been little recognition of the way in which marital histories lead to the growth or attenuation of family bonds. First analysed is data from General Household Survey, a national probability based cross-sectional survey, published annually, which included a module on social relationships in 1994 and 1998. Also, interviews with 85 older married, widowed, divorced and never married men revealed that much importance was attached to individual autonomy and independence, and many held ambivalent attitudes towards central features of the “female script,” such as the need for intimacy and social engagement. These findings are interpreted in terms of the cultural prescriptions for well-being in later life that, because they are derived from the experiences of research on women, may be ill suited to the perspectives of older men.