The Role of Neighborhood Social Networks in Health Behaviors and Healthy Aging

Dear Colleagues,

There is a consensus among environmental gerontologists that neighborhoods play a central role in individual health. Social networks are also a potential source of social support for health-seeking behaviors (e.g., physical activity, social participation, healthcare utilization). Yet, there is little anecdotal and empirical evidence on how neighborhoods interact with age-related changes in social networks and whether this potential interaction affects social participation, physical activity, and health in late life or across the lifespan. Changes in social networks for aging individuals could determine whether the individual has supportive and active social networks later in life. To inform interventions and new policies, stakeholders need to understand the relationship between neighborhood and social networks (e.g., active social networks, sedentary social networks, frail social networks) in old age and its influence on social participation, physical activity, and health. Thus, there is a need for research, systematic reviews, and theoretical frameworks investigating how neighborhoods interact with changes in social networks to influence physical activity, social participation, and health. This Special Issue aims to address these topics with papers reporting robustly designed primary studies. Papers building theoretical models, especially those based on a systematic review of the literature, are also of interest.

Dr. Nestor Asiamah
Dr. Ruth G. Lowry
Guest Editors

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