Social Relationships and Health

Do social relations explain health inequalities? Evidence from a longitudinal survey in a changing eastern German region

“…Furthermore, the results show a significant association of the structural aspects of social relations measured by the SII with self-rated health in a prospective design. This is in line with former studies, that analysed the association between social relations and health regarding morbidity, mortality and self-rated-health (Berkman and Glass 2000;Cohen 2004;Holt-Lunstad et al 2010;House et al 1988;Melchior et al 2003). Associations between the social relations' functional aspects at baseline and general health at follow-up are weaker.…”

“…In various studies social relations were shown to be an important health determinant (Berkman and Glass 2000;Cohen 2004;Holt-Lunstad et al 2010;House et al 1988) and a contributing factor to health behaviour (Weyers et al 2010). Generally, structural and functional aspects are distinguished regarding social relations (Berkman and Glass 2000;Cohen 2004).…”

“…Generally, structural and functional aspects are distinguished regarding social relations (Berkman and Glass 2000;Cohen 2004). Structural or quantitative characteristics of social relations are, for instance, the frequency, intensity or permanence of social contacts.…”

“…Berkman and Syme (1979) introduced the Social Network Index (SNI), which provides information on the extent of social integration. Functional or qualitative characteristics of social relationships are merged under the title ''social support'', typically divided into two subtypes: instrumental and emotional support (Cohen 2004). Instrumental support is related to the provision of material aid, such as financial assistance or help with daily tasks, while emotional support refers to the expression of empathy, caring, understanding and trust.…”

Coping and social support in asthma and allergy: the Västerbotten Environmental Health Study

“…It can be defined as the perception of being cared for, accepted and esteemed by others [19], and is often divided into emotional, instrumental and informative support [20][21]. Extensive literature shows beneficial effects of adequate social support in chronic disease [22] and in promoting health behavior [15]. Social support may affect coping according to the main-effect hypothesis, suggesting that the individual with strong perception of social support has a feeling of being loved and cared for, which has a permanent positive effect on the individual's general health [23][24].…”