Table 1.
Characteristics of the social network criterion, socioeconomic and health -related variables of older men (n = 2384) and women (n = 2224) in the 2017 Korean Living Profile Survey of Older People.
| All | Men | Women | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| n (%) or Mean ± SD | n (%) or Mean ± SD | n (%) or Mean ± SD | ||
| n | 4608 | 2384 | 2224 | |
| Criterion variables of social network type | ||||
| Married | 3406 | 2083 (86.8) | 1323 (60.4) | ** |
| Living alone | 884 | 231 (9.8) | 653 (27.9) | ** |
| Frequency of contact with children | 5.24 ± 2.93 | 5.15 ± 2.87 | 5.34 ± 2.98 | * |
| Frequency of contact with close friends/neighbors | 4.47 ± 1.34 | 2.34 ± 0.79 | 2.41 ± 0.71 | ** |
| Frequency of contact with close relatives | 1.40 ± 0.77 | 1.31 ± 0.73 | 1.49 ± 0.80 | ** |
| Frequency of participation in social acitivies | 4.30 ± 3.38 | 2.55 ± 2.88 | 3.72 ± 3.21 | ** |
| Total network size | 5.71 ± 3.03 | 5.66 ± 3.17 | 5.76 ± 2.88 | |
| Depressive symptoms | 2.86 ± 3.41 | 2.63 ± 3.24 | 3.10 ± 3.58 | ** |
| Covariates | ||||
| Age | 72.30 ± 5.33 | 72.93 ± 5.50 | 71.63 ± 5.05 | ** ** |
| 65–74 | 3101 (67.3) | 1492 (68.2) | 1609 (77.4) | |
| 75–84 | 1416(30.7) | 827 (28.6) | 588 (21.1) | |
| 85 and over | 92(2.0) | 65 (3.2) | 27 (1.5) | |
| Education | ||||
| Elementary school and less | 1934 (42.0) | 753 (29.9) | 1180 (50.1) | ** |
| Middle school | 1026 (22.3) | 553 (23.4) | 473 (22.0) | |
| High school | 1142 (24.8) | 702 (30.3) | 440 (21.1) | |
| College and over | 507 (11.0) | 376 (16.4) | 131 (6.9) | |
| Equivalent household income a | ||||
| 1st 33.3% | 1278 (27.7) | 701 (32.2) | 576 (28.6) | ** |
| 2nd 33.3% | 1754 (38.1) | 926 (38.4) | 828 (37.6) | |
| 3rd 33.3% (lowest) | 1577 (34.2) | 757 (29.5) | 820 (33.8) | |
| Self-rated health | ||||
| Good | 2194 (47.6) | 1274 (53.7) | 920 (42.1) | ** |
| Bad | 2414 (52.4) | 1110 (46.3) | 1304 (57.9) |
* p < 0.05; ** p < 0.01 for difference between men and women; SD = standard deviation. a Monthly household income divided by the square root of the number of household members.