Facebook as a Social Support environment for older adults

Abstract

The present study investigated the effects of the digital social network Facebook as a source of social support for older adults. Participants included thirteen elderly people, ten women and three men with a mean age of 62.38 (SD = 5.28), from the state of Rio Grande do Sul - Brazil. For data collection, a sample characterization questionnaire, convoy model of social support and the Scale of Social Support were used. After 36 meetings, the results indicated a significant increase in the structure of the social network via Facebook. The expansion of the network took place in domestic (p = 0.046) and intermediate (p = 0.039) circles, which comprise the most intimate and close members. The Feel Respected variable (FR, a part of the functional characteristics of the support network, denoted significant increase (p = 0.007). The results indicate that digital networks can be a social support alternative for successful aging.