Gender, social networks and survival time: a 20-year study of the rural elderly

The study design is a 20-year panel of 1700 rural elderly individuals who were interviewed in 1966, 1974 and in 1986–1987. The dependent variable was survival time. Proportional hazards and time dependent covariates were used to analyze the data. Gender differences in survival were explored. Participation in formal social networks predicted survival time. The findings support Durkheimʹs theory of social integration and call into question genetic differences as the explanation for the differential survival time of men and women.