Abstract

Latinos tend to outlive the general population, but their longevity is overshadowed by serious functional limitations and a heightened need for caregiving resources as they age. Although much care occurs within informal networks, we know little about how becoming a caregiver influences the social networks of community-dwelling Latino older adults. Given the link between health and social networks, understanding these nuances could provide useful insights. Latent Class Analysis was used to group the social-relational characteristics of 6,489 respondents across three rounds of NSHAP data. We generated a three-class solution: A ‘family-centric’ class with overall low social connectivity, an ‘enriched’ class with strong connections, and a ‘diverse’ class showing the greatest network range. Although most (70%) belong to either an enriched or diverse network, Latino respondents did not. In the first round, nearly half (49%) were in the ‘family-centric’ class, compared to non-Latino Blacks (37%) and Whites (24%). By the third round, Latino respondents in the ‘family-centric’ class dropped but rose for all other groups. When caregiving and network type were considered, being someone’s caregiver significantly increases one’s probability of belonging to an ‘enriched’ network, regardless of ethnic/racial group. However, Latino caregivers had a decreased likelihood of belonging to a ‘diverse’ social network. Latinos’ reliance on informal care could explain the change from ‘family-centric’ to ‘enriched’ network, a constructive transfer that coincides with better health outcomes. However, this shift suggests a capacity for positive network movement, making it worrisome that Latino caregivers are less likely to be in a ‘diverse’ network.

Presenters

Lissette Piedra
Associate Professor, School of Social Work, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, United States

Linda Waite
George Herbert Mead Distinguished Service Professor , Department of Sociology, University of Chicago, United States

James Iveniuk
Senior Research Scientist, Academic Research Centers, University of Chicago, United States

Details

Presentation Type

Presentation in a Themed Panel

Theme

Contextual Factors and Resilience

KEYWORDS

Latino, Social Life, Health, Aging

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