The Effect of Social Capital and Family Support on Loneliness among Korean Adults: Intergenerational Differences

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to investigate intergenerational differences in the associations of social capital attributes (family network, friend network, community cohesion) and perceived family support (instrumental, informational, emotional) with loneliness among Korean adults. Interview data were collected from participants aged 18+ in South Korea during 2017 (Ng= 1,017), classified by three age groups (18–44, 45–64, 65+). In regression models, greater loneliness was associated with smaller friend networks and lower community cohesion for the younger group, lower information support and higher instrumental support for the middle-aged group, and lower informational and emotional support for the older group.

KEYWORDS:

• Loneliness
• social network
• perceived social support
• Korean adults
• intergenerational difference

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the grants from the National Research Foundation of Korea and the Korean Government [NRF-2016-S1A3A2924582; 2020S1A5C2A03092919].