Chronic Pain and Friendship Among Middle-Aged and Older U.S. Adults.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

This study examines how chronic pain affects friendship in later life. We test whether onset of pain leads to social network activation, as suggested by research on other health conditions, or whether pain-an unverifiable and often stigmatizing condition-functions as a "threat to the social self".

Method

Using longitudinal data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS; N = 4,598; 2006/2008 as Time 1 and 2010/2012 as Time 2), we conducted OLS regressions with a lagged dependent variable approach to assess how new-onset chronic pain predicted (a) respondents' number of close friends and (b) their frequency of in-person meetings with friends, controlling for sociodemographic variables and health conditions.

Results

New-onset severe pain predicted a decrease i

SUBMITTER: Yang Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8599034 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature