Article by Francisca Ortiz and Wendy Olsen.

Measuring satisfaction is not easy, especially when it comes to populations that are rarely observed, such as the elderly. This study compiles 30 life stories from different districts of the city of Santiago and compares their social support networks to try to understand how they impact satisfaction in retirement.

For this study, multiple contextual factors were considered, such as the socioeconomic situation of the interviewees and their families. This includes thinking about the pension system, personal history, their possible need to work, the ability to contribute financially to the family, among others.



Main findings


One of the main findings is that the social support networks are immediately differenciated according to social stratum and also, size and possible reciprocity. This deepens as factors such as satisfaction with pensions or the ability to use the savings achieved throughout life are added. Likewise, health status is a key element in satisfaction, along with the need to work or proximity to social support networks.