Changes In Personal Networks Research Articles

A longitudinal model of communication networks among HIV service providers in a Ryan White system during data integration

The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program (RWHAP), dedicated to HIV prevention and treatment, has funded initiatives to improve cross-sector collaboration between healthcare and housing—including data integration. This article models change in communication networks within a RWHAP Transitional Grant Area (TGA) during data integration. Medical case managers, housing providers, and administrators from a RWHAP TGA identified up to ten people important to them in their professional network at two timepoints between 2018 and 2019. Repeated measures linear modeling was used to analyze changes in personal networks while separable temporal exponential random graph modeling assessed changes in whole network. Participants (n = 35) were more likely to form ties with others from different employment sectors (PE = −1.19, SE = 0.42) and medical case managers were significantly more likely to form ties (PE = 1.79, SE = 0.42). Transitive communication ties were significantly more to form (PE = 0.72, SE = 0.08). Transitive and cross-sector collaboration formation indicates improved communication between providers. Data integration may be a mechanism to improve prevention and treatment efforts for HIV.

Personal Social Networks of Community-Dwelling Oldest Old During the Covid-19 Pandemic-A Qualitative Study.

The COVID-19 pandemic and its related restrictions have affected the everyday life of older people. Advanced age is a significant predisposing factor for a more severe COVID-19 infection, increasing the risk for hospitalization and mortality. Even though restrictions have been, thus, well-grounded, they may also have had detrimental effects on the social well-being of older people. Personal networks and social activity are known protective factors against the premature decline in health and functioning, and it is widely acknowledged that social isolation increases feelings of loneliness, poor quality of life, and even the risk for diseases and disabilities among older adults. This qualitative study investigated changes in personal networks among community-dwelling oldest-old individuals (persons aged 80 and over) during the first and second waves of the COVID-19 pandemic in Finland. The data is part of the Cardiovascular Risk Factors, Aging, and Dementia (CAIDE85+) study, which is an ongoing large longitudinal population-based study in Finland. In this qualitative sub-study, we analyzed fifteen in-depth telephone interviews using directed content analyses and identified five types of changes in personal social networks during the pandemic. In type 1, all social contacts were significantly reduced due to official recommendations and fear of the virus. Type 2 included modified ways of being socially active i.e., by deploying new technology, and in type 3, social contacts increased during the lockdown. In type 4, personal social networks were changed unexpectedly or dramatically due to a death of a spouse, for example. In type 5, we observed stable social networks, which had not been affected by the pandemic. At an individual level, one person could have had different types of changes during the pandemic. These results highlight the heterogeneity of the oldest olds' personal social networks and changes related to them during the exceptional times of the COVID-19 pandemic. Social activity and personal networks play an important role in the well-being of the oldest old, but individual situations, needs, and preferences toward personal social networks should be taken into account when planning social activities, policies, and interventions.

Changes in Personal Social Networks across Individuals Leaving Their Street Gang: Just What Are Youth Leaving Behind?

Despite a small but growing literature on gang disengagement and desistance, little is known about how social networks and changes in networks correspond to self-reported changes in street gang membership over time. The current study describes the personal or “ego” network composition of 228 street gang members in two east coast cities in the United States. The study highlights changes in personal network composition associated with changes in gang membership over two waves of survey data, describing notable differences between those who reported leaving their gang and fully disengaging from their gang associates, and those who reported leaving but still participate and hang out with their gang friends. Results show some positive changes (i.e., reductions) in criminal behavior and many changes toward an increase in prosocial relationships for those who fully disengaged from their street gang, versus limited changes in both criminal behavior and network composition over time for those who reported leaving but remained engaged with their gang. The findings suggest that gang intervention programs that increase access to or support building prosocial relationships may assist the gang disengagement process and ultimately buoy desistance from crime. The study also has implications for theorizing about gang and crime desistance, in that the role of social ties should take a more central role.

Romantic relationship formation, maintenance and changes in personal networks.

According to the social withdrawal hypothesis, a personal network becomes smaller when a person starts dating, cohabitates and marries. This phenomenon is widely established in the literature. However, these studies were usually done with cross-sectional data. As a consequence, it is still unclear whether or how personal networks actually change after the formation of a romantic relationship (i.e. dating), after starting cohabitation and after getting married. It is also unclear how long and to what extent social withdrawal continues. To overcome these shortcomings, we examine how the size and composition of personal networks change after relationship formation. We use two waves of the PAIRFAM dataset (2008 and 2011), which include information about 6640 Germans who were between 16 and 39 years of age at the time of the second interview in 2008. Results from fixed effects regression models underscore that the association between romantic relationships and changes in personal networks is more dynamic than previous studies suggested. For example, after the formation of a romantic relationship people show a decrease in non-kin contacts, while an increase in non-kin contacts is observed after two years of dating, as well as after two years of cohabitation. These network changes suggest that people adapt their social networks to the demands and constraints of each phase of a romantic relationship. Because the decline in network size after dating is not stable, there is no need to be afraid that those who have a romantic partner remain isolated from other relationships.

Changes in personal relationships: How social contexts affect the emergence and discontinuation of relationships

Although the average number of confidants and practical helpers in Dutch networks only slightly changes over seven years, we found considerable changes among these relationships over these years. To explain the stability of existing relationships as well as the emergence of new ones, we paid attention to meeting opportunities in specific social contexts, such as the work place, family, sports clubs, voluntary associations, and the neighborhood.Notably, we found that a lack of meeting opportunities is an important reason why many personal relationships are discontinued, and that a path-dependent use of social contexts makes new relationships more likely to emerge in a specific context if existing network members are already met in that context. Finally, it is proposed that care should be taken when interpreting changes in personal networks if one relies on information about networks that are delineated using only one name generating question.

Changes in personal networks of women in residential and outpatient substance abuse treatment

Changes in personal network composition, support and structure over 12months were examined in 377 women from residential (n=119) and intensive outpatient substance abuse treatment (n=258) through face-to-face interviews utilizing computer based data collection. Personal networks of women who entered residential treatment had more substance users, more people with whom they had used alcohol and/or drugs, and fewer people from treatment programs or self- help groups than personal networks of women who entered intensive outpatient treatment. By 12months post treatment intake, network composition improved for women in residential treatment; however, concrete support was still lower and substance users are still more prevalent in their networks. Network composition of women in outpatient treatment remained largely the same over time. Both groups increased cohesiveness within the network over 12months. Targeting interventions that support positive changes in personal networks may heighten positive long term outcomes for women entering treatment.

Nonkin in Older Adults' Personal Networks: More Important Among Later Cohorts?

Research on age-related changes in personal networks has found compelling evidence for socioemotional selectivity theory and exchange theory holding that older adults experience a decline in less emotionally close nonkin relations as they age. However, recent societal developments are likely to have increased the salience of nonkin relations. We hypothesize that age-related decline in the proportion of nonkin in personal networks has been delayed or is slower in late birth cohorts of older adults compared with earlier cohorts. Seven observations by the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam covering a time span of 17 years since 1992 were analyzed using multilevel regression analysis. The sample had 12,949 person-year observations from 3,516 respondents born between 1908 and 1937. Age-related decline in the proportion of nonkin is absent for cohorts born after 1922 and large for cohorts born in 1922 and before. Mediating variables for health and other resources did not explain cohort differences in age-related change. The salience of nonkin relationships is likely to have increased due to societal changes, resulting in absence or delay of decline in later cohorts. The findings raise the need for a reevaluation of old age and the creation of new theoretical perspectives.