Functional Support Associated with Belonging to the Red Hat Society®, a Leisure-Based Social Network

Researchers have addressed the structure of leisure-based social networks but have given little attention to their functional outcomes, especially among older women. A leisure-based social network popular among older women but little studied is the Red Hat Society®. Thus, we chose to address how old...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of leisure research Vol. 40; no. 4; pp. 531 - 555
Main Authors Kerstetter, Deborah L., Yarnal, Careen M., Son, Julie S., Yen, I-Yin, Baker, Birgitta S.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Urbana Routledge 01.01.2008
Sagamore Publishing
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects
Age
Aging (Individuals)
Expenditure
Females
Friends
functional support
Interpersonal Relationship
Leisure
Leisure Time
Network Analysis
Older people
Older women
Researchers
Social Behavior
Social capital
Social identity
social network
Social networks
Social Problems
Social support
Society
Studies
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Summary:Researchers have addressed the structure of leisure-based social networks but have given little attention to their functional outcomes, especially among older women. A leisure-based social network popular among older women but little studied is the Red Hat Society®. Thus, we chose to address how older women describe the functional support they receive from one leisure-based social network, the Red Hat Society®. Data were gathered from more than 4,000 members. The findings indicated that functional support is multidimensional (e.g., spending time with friends, attention from others) and with few exceptions, positive. In addition, the functional support is primarily emotional and social in nature rather than informational and financial, as has previously been reported in social networks research.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
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ISSN:0022-2216
2159-6417
DOI:10.1080/00222216.2008.11950151