Social Networks over the Life Course: Continuity, Context, and Consequences by Jasmine A. Manalel A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Psychology) at the University of Michigan 2018 Doctoral Committee: Professor Toni C. Antonucci, Chair Associate Professor Kira S. Birditt Professor Kai S. Cortina Professor Berit Ingersoll-Dayton Professor Jacqui Smith Jasmine A. Manalel [email protected] ORCID id: 0000-0003-0291-6293 © Jasmine Manalel 2018 DEDICATION To the memory of my godfather, Thomas Pannaparayil, the first in my family to obtain a doctorate. His final words to me before his passing were, “I want to hear about your dissertation.” This is for him. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS “Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family. Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one.” — Jane Howard The quote above foreshadows the topic of this dissertation, capturing the importance of social networks for all people. I am fortunate to have begun my doctoral training with the support of a strong social network, and I continued to build my network over the past five years. I have been supported, challenged, and inspired by my mentors, colleagues, friends, and family. I have so many people to thank for helping me reach this point. First, I have had the privilege of working with two incredible advisors, Toni Antonucci and Jacqui Smith. They held me to the highest of standards and provided me with the time and space to meet them. Thank you, Toni, for seeing my potential, pushing me to realize that potential, especially when I found it difficult to push myself, and for always seeking out opportunities that allow me to grow as a person, a scientist, and a scholar. With your support and encouragement, I accomplished so much that I never thought was possible. Thank you, Jacqui, for your commitment to your students and invaluable mentorship. From Michigan Square to the new wing of ISR, your office door has always been open and you have been so generous with your time and resources. I could not have asked for a better team of advisors. From them, I learned not only how to do science, but also how to be a scientist and a scholar. I will never be able to pay it back, but I hope to one day be able to pay it forward. iii I am also grateful to Kira Birditt, who has been a mentor to me since my first year of graduate school. Thank you, Kira, for the opportunity to work on so many different projects with you. Your advice, encouragement, and mentorship have been instrumental to my doctoral training and personal growth. Kai Cortina and Berit Ingersoll-Dayton offered their expertise and wisdom during the dissertation phase of my graduate education. Thank you, Kai, for your unadulterated intellectual curiosity and for encouraging me to see the bigger picture, especially at times when I was lost in the details. Thank you, Berit, for your perspective, and for reminding me of the practical implications of the work that we do and of our potential to serve the public through research. To all the members of my dissertation committee, thank you for inspiring and motivating me with your genuine enthusiasm for this work. I am thankful for my involvement in two incredibly talented and supportive research groups. To the members of the Life Course Development Group, Kristine Ajrouch, Carey Sherman, Noah Webster, Angie Turkelson, Kathy Taylor, and Kim Soroka, thank you for your honest feedback, constructive criticism, and constant encouragement. I cherish our round-table lunches and the candid conversations I have had with each of you over the years. To the members of the Psychosocial Aging Group, Lindsay Ryan, Marina Larkina, Mengyao Hu, Haena Lee, Sandy Becker, and Liz Morris, Nicky Newton, Alex Smith, and Shannon Mejía, thank you for your patience as you sat through the most preliminary of presentations and read the roughest of drafts. From our project group meetings to our ice cream outings, the time I spent with you all has been invaluable. I am especially grateful for the knowledge, support, and guidance of the lab alumni—Hannah Giasson, Elise Hernandez, Jennifer Sun, Wylie Wan, Bill Chopik, Eric Kim, and Sojung Park. In my research family tree, you are sisters and brothers. iv Shared experiences can be a form of social support, and I cannot think of anyone else I have shared more experiences with than my cohort—Amira Halawah, Arianna Gard, Emma Beyers-Carlson, Fernanda Cross, Kimberly Brink, Lauren Tighe, Margaret Echelbarger, Neelima Wagley, Nkemka Anyiwo, Sammy Ahmed, Tyler Hein. I am grateful to have had so many friends and future colleagues with whom to commiserate and celebrate. I want to especially acknowledge Lauren for being the best ISR office buddy, and also Amira, Arianna, and Tyler for the deep friendships we cultivated. My experience in the LIFE program has also been instrumental to my academic socialization and development as a researcher. I thank Patti Reuter- Lorenz and my LIFE-mates, both here and abroad, for providing me with another outlet through which to share my research. To the wonderful faculty I have had the privilege of learning from, both inside and outside the classroom, thank you for your intellectual contributions. I am also grateful for the connections I made outside of the psychology department and ISR. In particular, I am grateful to the members of the St. Mary’s music ministry for welcoming me into their community and for providing me with a creative outlet and spiritual refuge. To my choir, thank you for your prayers, words of encouragement, and friendships. Finally, I acknowledge the enduring support of my friends and family, my inner circle, my core network. To my parents, thank you for teaching by example the value of hard work, and for instilling in me a sense of humble confidence from an early age. Your sacrifices have given me the privilege to explore what I love while providing me with a secure base and safe haven. To Ashley and Matthew, my first social network. I am grateful that our sibling relationships have developed such that we continue to cheer each other on through every challenge and towards each new accomplishment. To my best friends, my fellow Wahoo musketeers— Corinna and v Krystal, thank you for the laughter, for always being a phone call (or text, or Facebook message, or Snapchat) away. To my Fantastic Four high school crew, Lauren, Kalani, and Namrata, thank you for your continued support over the past 10+ years. To Jesse, my best friend and secure base, thank you for sharing in every sorrow and joy with me. You have been here for me every step of the way. This dissertation is inspired by my family, my social network, my convoy, and I am incredibly thankful for everyone who helped me get to this point. Ultimately, this dissertation is a product of our collective efforts, our interactions, conversations, and shared experiences. That, I believe, is just how good science is done. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS DEDICATION ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii LIST OF TABLES ix LIST OF FIGURES xi ABSTRACT xii CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 1 Convoy Model of Social Relations 3 Measuring Social Networks 6 Life Course Perspectives on Social Relations 10 Dissertation Overview 15 CHAPTER II: BEYOND THE NUCLEAR FAMILY: PATTERN-CENTERED INVESTIGATION OF CHILDREN’S SOCIAL NETWORKS 19 Introduction 19 Research Questions 28 Method 29 Results 33 Discussion 36 CHAPTER III: SOCIAL NETWORKS FROM CHILDHOOD TO YOUNG ADULTHOOD: STABILITY AND CHANGE 56 vii Introduction 56 Research Questions 64 Method 64 Results 69 Discussion 73 CHAPTER IV: BEYOND SOCIAL NETWORKS IN OLDER ADULTHOOD: BENEFITS OF ACTIVITY ENGAGEMENT FOR LONELINESS 97 Introduction 97 Research Questions 104 Method 105 Results 110 Discussion 115 CHAPTER V: GENERAL DISCUSSION 138 Summary of Findings 139 Theoretical Contributions 142 Implications for Policy and Practice 146 Directions for Future Research 148 Conclusion 150 REFERENCES 151 viii LIST OF TABLES 2.1 Social Relations and Health Study Child Sample, Descriptive Statistics 44 2.2 Correlations, Means, and Standard Deviations of Social Network Characteristics 45 2.3 Fit Statistics for Latent Profile Analysis 46 2.4 Social Network Structure Characteristics and Sociodemographics by Network Type 47 2.5 Percentage of Respondents Who Included Social Partners in Networks by Typology 48 2.6 Results of Multinomial Logistic Regression Examining Sociodemographic 49 Predictors of Network Type 2.7 Percentage of Support Functions Filled by Different Relationship Partners by 50 Network Type 2.8 Depressive Symptoms as a Function of Child Network Typology 51 2.9 Depressive Symptoms as a Function of Child Network Typology, Controlling for 52 Number of Stress Life Events 2.10 Stressful Life Events over the Past Year as a Function of Child Network Typology 53 3.1 Social Relations and Health Longitudinal Study Child Sample, Descriptive Statistics 80 3.2 Correlations and Descriptive Statistics of Social Network Characteristics from 81 Childhood to Adulthood 3.3 Social Network Structure Characteristics as a Function of Time from Childhood to 82 Adulthood 3.4 Social Network Composition as a Function of Time from Childhood to Adulthood 84 3.5 Characteristics of Social Network Typologies in Wave 2 86 3.6 Characteristics of Social Network Typologies in Wave 3 87 ix 3.7 Cross-tabulation of Network Typology Membership at Wave 1 and Wave 2 88 3.8 Cross-tabulation of Network Typology Membership at Wave 2 and Wave 3 89 3.9 Cross-tabulation of Network Typology Membership at Wave 1