Social capital, health and wellbeing in ageing populations in the UK and Brazil

My PhD was on the importance of social relationships and activities for the health and wellbeing of older adults living in England. I used oral health as a marker of the health of older adults as it is a neglected but important aspect of the wellbeing among older adults. The PhD investigated whether older people who participate more in social organisations or who get more support from family and friends have better oral health than older people who participate less or have less social support. Participation in society and social or family support is known as social capital. The reason why this is important to investigate is because of the idea of active ageing- if older people are able to participate more fully in society and have greater social capital, they may be able to age more healthily and have less problems with their health as they get older. I found that older adults with lower social support reported poorer oral health. I also found that as people got older, those who increased their social support had improved levels of wellbeing.
Following the PhD, I now wish to extend this research into other countries. In developing countries like Brazil, the social relationships of older adults tend to be constrained within households and families. In the UK, older adults have more extended relationships with people and organisations outside their household, and some studies show that this is better for their wellbeing than just having family based relationships. Apart from comparing the social capital and wellbeing of older people in Brazil and the UK, I also wish to examine social relationships across the adult lifespan, not just among older adults. We know that social relationships change as people get older, but we don't know if this change is caused by a deterioration in their health and wellbeing, or if their social relationships affects their level of wellbeing. Furthermore, we also know that poverty and financial hardship affects relationships and wellbeing, but we don't know if having good social relationships can reduce some of the negative effects of being poor on wellbeing. This is especially important to investigate given the wide disparities between the rich and poor in Brazil.
The aim of the fellowship is to establish myself as a research leader on social capital, health and wellbeing in the context of ageing and socio-economic inequalities in the UK and Brazil. I will extend my PhD on social capital, health and wellbeing among older adults by examining this association in a new study of older adults in Brazil, and also by looking at this association using new data from the UK with measures of social capital, health and wellbeing across the whole adult lifespan. I plan on publicising the main research findings in Brazil through blogs, local journals and media organisations, working with the leading public health organization in Brazil (Fiocruz), as well as the leading think tank on ageing in Brazil (ILC-Brazil). I will write a report for this think tank on the unique challenges Brazil faces in relation to the social capital of its ageing population and organize a workshop to publicise this report. I will also go to leading conferences on ageing, present my research to international researchers and develop international collaborations with leading researchers and policy organisations on ageing, particularly from middle-income countries in Latin America. I will gain further research skills especially relevant to comparing populations in Brazil and the UK. This will form the backbone for future high quality research and grant applications by laying the foundations for original research on social capital and ageing across the life course in the UK and Brazil.