Later-Life Social Networks and Family Life: Differences between Migrants and Non-Migrants

Maria Hornung , Humboldt Universität zu Berlin

This paper investigates later-life social networks focusing on migrants and non-migrants in Germany aged 55-65. Using data from the German Socioeconomic Panel, we employ latent class analysis to create network classes based on the frequency of family and friend visits, engagement in social activities, and the number of friends. We identify three distinct social network typologies: a restricted, a socially embedded, and a family and kin-centered. Preliminary results indicate that migrants are less likely to belong to a network class characterized by frequent engagement in social activities but more likely to belong to a family and kin-centered network than non-migrants. No significant differences exist between migrants and non-migrants in belonging to the restricted social network. Furthermore, differences in social network classes seem to be linked to different family statuses, with migrants being in different social network classes than non-migrants, especially when they live with a partner and no children. This finding could be driven by different behavior between migrants and non-migrants when children leave home or become grandparents.

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 Presented in Session 63. Family and Social Ties of Migrants