Loneliness and Expanding Social Ties in Later Life: Motivation, Perceived Success, and Implications for Emotional Health.

Objectives: Social networks undergo changes in later life, reflecting proactive decreases as well as increases in size, but relatively little is known about the factors that motivate older adults to expand their social ties. Loneliness might be expected to motivate older adults to expand their social ties. Paradoxically, however, studies of younger age groups have linked loneliness to a self-protective reluctance to initiate social contact.

Switching it up: Activity diversity and cognitive functioning in later life.

Participating in a broad and balanced range of daily activities (i.e., activity diversity) has been associated with better cognitive functioning in later life.

Physical Activity and Daily Stress Processes in Older Adulthood.

Objectives: Older adults who are physically active report lower levels of stress. Less is known about the links between physical activity and exposure and reactivity to stressful events in daily life. The current study examined within-person associations between actigraphy-assessed daily physical activity and exposure and affective reactivity to naturally occurring interpersonal stressors.

Does Diversity of Social Ties Really Matter More for Health and Leisure Activity than Number of Social Ties? Evidence from Later Adulthood.

Objectives: Claims that the diversity of social ties matters more for health than the sheer number of ties have largely gone untested. This study accordingly compared the unique associations of number versus diversity of social ties with key health-related outcomes: functional limitations and leisure activities. Additionally, positive and ambivalent ties were distinguished.