Does anomie help to explain social participation in very old age? A mediation analysis

Social participation in old age is beneficial for the individual and the community. However, very old adults are confronted with specific challenges regarding their resources, values, and social networks. In a rapidly changing society, very old adults may experience conflicts resulting in individual experiences of anomie which we understand as feelings of disorientation. They can have negative effects on their social participation. Using data from the population-based survey Old Age in Germany (D80+), we examined whether individual experiences of anomie played a mediating role in explaining very old adults' social participation. Based on the civic voluntarism model and theories of anomie and ageing, hypotheses were derived and tested using a structural equation model (SEM). Predictors included in the model were socio-economic and health resources, individual values, and social relationships. The SEM revealed significant indirect effects through anomie for education, income, and health. Direct effects on social participation were significant for all predictors except income. While mediation through anomie played a minor role for education and health, its importance for income was greater. Furthermore, model results showed a significant direct effect of all predictors on anomie and of anomie on social participation. While the predictors of social participation according to the civic voluntarism model could be confirmed for very old age, individual experiences of anomie seemed to play a crucial mediating role only for income. The model indicated that not income itself, but rather the insecurities caused by relative deprivation, influenced the social participation of very old adults.