Personalization of formal social relationships by the elderly.

This article examines the role of formal support services in the lives of elderly residents of HUD-subsidized buildings. Tenants identified a variety of formal roles as important in their lives. The three most central roles were physician (79%), apartment manager (58%), and social worker (51%). Formal roles were an important source of both instrumental and affective support in a wide variety of circumstances. Many individuals in formal roles were considered friends and the highly personalized nature of these relationships was a surprising finding.