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Changes of Personal Network Configuration Over the Life Course in the USA: A Latent Class Approach

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Social Networks and the Life Course

Part of the book series: Frontiers in Sociology and Social Research ((FSSR,volume 2))

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Abstract

This chapter describes the changing composition of personal networks over the life course and tests if the effects of network composition on well-being, especially happiness, vary over age. Data are drawn from the social network module in 2004 General Social Survey, which collected general social network information of respondents aged over 18 year old (N = 975). Results demonstrate that six different types of personal network composition are distributed to varying degrees over the life course. In addition, each type of personal network has different implications for an individual’s happiness according to age group. In this regard, socially isolated people consistently show low levels of happiness compared with others in most age groups.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology, Yonsei University, Seoul, South Korea

    Yoosik Youm

  2. Department of Sociology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

    Edward O. Laumann

  3. Department of Sociology, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA

    Keunbok Lee

Authors
  1. Yoosik Youm
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  2. Edward O. Laumann
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  3. Keunbok Lee
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Correspondence to Yoosik Youm .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology and Criminology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, USA

    Duane F. Alwin

  2. Department of Sociology and Criminology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, USA

    Diane H. Felmlee

  3. Department of Sociology and Criminology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, USA

    Derek A. Kreager

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Youm, Y., Laumann, E.O., Lee, K. (2018). Changes of Personal Network Configuration Over the Life Course in the USA: A Latent Class Approach. In: Alwin, D., Felmlee, D., Kreager, D. (eds) Social Networks and the Life Course. Frontiers in Sociology and Social Research, vol 2. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71544-5_17

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71544-5_17

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-71543-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-71544-5

  • eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)

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