泉北ニュータウンにおける独居高齢者の孤立と人的ネットワーク : H台住区における事例調査

摘要

This study is a part of the lifestyle fact-finding for elderly residents living alone in the Senboku-New Town in Osaka. This report seeks to clarify what forms of economic poverty and isolation are actually being experienced, with particular reference to the influence of human networks. We report interviews with 10 elderly residents living alone, performed in August 2008, together with our analysis and consideration of the results. The results revealed the following: 1) the construction of human networks was greatly influenced by status, previous occupation, gender and other factors, 2)economic resources can become network resources, but these tend to promote network construction in other, more distant, areas rather than among neighboring acquaintances, and 3) there was a tendency for women than for men to have more local acquaintances and to make networks among neighbors more easily. The future problem is how to promote discussion as to how best to support the elderly living alone.