The social distribution of primary social isolation among the aged: a subcultural approach

This is a report of research on subcultural variation in primary social isolation in a representative sample of older persons in an urban area. The research classifies the respondents by subcultural status and examines the rates of primary social isolation. Most persons (85%) can be classified in sixteen of forty hypothetical subcultures, but only seven subcultures contain enough respondents to be numerically important. Two subcultures are identified with above average rates of primary social isolation and three with below average rates of primary social isolation. Sociologically, it makes sense to look at primary social isolation as a group phenomenon.