The Convoy Model

The convoy theory tries to take into account the changing relationships in adulthood. One of the easier ways to understand the theory is by taking a look at the diagrams created by Antonucci, Akiyama, & Takahashi (2004) demonstrating the changing relationships with YOU as the center from age 20 - 93. My current social convoy is below. Apparently degrees of relationships change according to age. My personal chart is atypical because I have no children. The most important people are in the inner circle at the top of the chart and highest up on the chart. In my personal chart, this means my spouse is the person that is closest to me at this time, followed by my mother and then my father. In the next area of my chart, the person closest to me is a female friend, following by a male friend and then a brother. In my outer circle, a female friend is closest, followed by a brother. This chart would have been different in my younger days and will change as I age and my relationships change. That is the point of the convoy--to document our constantly changing social relationship network (Bjorklund & Bee, 2008).

Major Theorists

Toni Antonucci (1980, 1990)

Citations to Major Works

• Kahn, R. L., & Antonucci, T. C. (1980). Convoys over the life course: Attachment, roles, and social support. In P.B. Baltes & O. Brim (Eds.) Life-span development and behavior (Vol. 3, pp. 253-268), New York: Academic Press
• Anntonucci, T.C. Akiyama, H., & Takahashi, K. (2004). Attachment and close relationships across the life span. Attachment and Human Development, 6, 353-370.

Web Links

http://psychsoc.gerontologyjournals.org/cgi/content/full/60/6/S311