AARP conducted a study of 40+ adults across the United States to understand the factors that influence social engagement, isolation, loneliness and social network size among older adults. The study also examined the relationship between social engagement, isolation, and loneliness and brain health, physical health and mental well-being.

Key findings include:

Based on social network size, social group involvement, and satisfaction with social connectedness, four social types emerged to characterize 40+ adults:  The Highly-connected, the People-People, the Givers, and the Socially-Disconnected.
One in five 40+ adults are “Socially-Disconnected.” They have small social networks, a low-level of social group involvement, are dissatisfied with their social connectedness, and have below-average mental well-being scores. This group is most in need of suggestions on how to improve their level of engagement.
Having a purpose in life is important to nearly all 40+ adults. Those who consider this to be important have larger social networks and higher average mental well-being scores compared to those who think it is unimportant.

Read the source article at AARP - Real Possibilities