Continuity and change in social support between young-old and old-old or very-old age.

This longitudinal research examined continuity and change in social support in a sample of 74 old-old (74 to 84) or very-old (85 and over) members of the Berkeley Older Generation Study. Considerable continuity in extent of contact was found between 1969 and 1983 for the group as a whole, particularly with respect to family relationships. In beyond-family contacts, declines were observed for men but not women, and for the very-old but not the old-old. Important changes also were observed in involvement or subjective level of commitment: satisfaction with children increased, while involvement beyond the family declined.