The Effect of Social Network on the Life Satisfaction of the Elderly: Focusing on Mediating Effect of the Self-Esteem

The purpose of this study was to examine the mediating effect of self-esteem in terms of social network of the elderly explains life satisfaction. For this purpose, 200 elderly people aged 80 years or older data were collected from Gyeongsangbuk-do Province. The survey was conducted in November with the help of two to three research assistants. The results of this study are as follows. First, this study proved that the social network of the elderly influenced the life satisfaction. Second, this study also proved that the self-esteem of the elderly influenced the life satisfaction. Third, it was found that social network of the elderly significantly influencing the self-esteem, which, in turn, significantly increased the life satisfaction. These results indicate that social networks and self-esteem are important factors in the life satisfaction of the elderly. Implications and suggestions were presented based on the research results.