Abstract:

To investigate the relationship between the relative presence of informal social support systems for the elderly & their psychological, demographic, & other social situations, a telephone survey of 2,672 randomly selected Tex residents (a 75% response rate), 55 years of age or over, was conducted. Surveys consisted of: (1) several questions regarding demographic characteristics, attitudes, services use, & self-report mental health, (2) questions designed to measure amount of informal social support, & (3) questions measuring level of morale & leisure/family & friend interaction activities. Though the majority of respondents experienced relatively high levels of informal social support, those with higher informal support experienced higher morale, more activity, & higher self-concept. Several sociodemographic variables were also positively correlated with informal support. The social policy implications of these findings are discussed.