. "6 The Role of Social Networks and Social Integration." Explaining Divergent Levels of Longevity in High-Income Countries. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 2011.
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Explaining Divergent Levels of Longevity in High-Income Countries
at one point in time, generally near the present. Nonetheless, at this point there appears to be little reason to believe that social networks played a role in the divergence in life expectancy trends among high-income nations from 1980 to 2005. As for explaining the current gap in life expectancy, the details of the networks may vary from country to country, but countries appear to differ relatively little in the overall level of support individuals receive from their social networks. Thus at present, the available data do not support the notion that social networks play an important role in international variations in longevity.
