Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine the association of subjective well-being and social support of friends among the old adults in the communtieis.
Method: The samples were from the older adults aged 55 years old or above from the community care centers, Taichung. The face-to-face questionnaire was used to collect the data. In total 150 participants completed the survey. The variables included demographics, health, social network and social support from family and friends, and subjective well-being. Descriptive statistics, t-test, correlation, and linear regression analysis were applied.
Results: The mean age of the participants were 75±7.9 years; 74.7% of them were female. The participants who would like to meet new friend, received less family help, and getting more respect from friends, were more likely to have higher subjective well-being. The number and the contact frequency of family members and friends were no significant. Friendship may be more important for the widows/widowers. In addition, the older adults who had higher education, less depression symptoms, and better cognitive function had higher subjective well-being.
Conclusion: The quality of friendship is related to subjective well-being. The government should encourage the provision of courses or activities of the community to enhance the opportunity of social participation for the older adults, in order to increase lifelong learning and meeting new friends, and further to promote subjective well-being.
