Social Support Measurement and Intervention A Guide for Health and Social Scientists

by Cohen, Sheldon; Underwood, Lynn G.; Gottlieb, Benjamin H.

• ISBN13: 9780195126709
• ISBN10: 019512670X
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2000-10-19
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Surgery and pharmaceuticals are not the only effective procedures we have to improve our health. The natural human tendency to care for fellow humans, to support them with social networks, has proven to be a powerful treatment as well. As a result, the areas of application for social supportintervention have expanded dramatically during the past 20 years. As these areas have expanded, so too has the literature on the theory and measurement of social support. Yet, the literature has focussed on very particular areas. Investigators in the social sciences have mainly focused on theprotection that social support confers in the context of stressful life events and transitions, whereas studies in the health sciences have concentrated on the effects of social networks and supports on population mortality and morbidity. Although no single theoretical framework has been widelyaccepted, there is consensus that both the psychological sense of support and actual expressions of support play critical roles in maintaining health and well being. This book is a state-of-the-art resource for the selection and development of strategies for social support assessment andintervention. Designed for use by behavioral and medical scientists conducting studies of physical illness, psychological adjustment, and psychiatric illness in human populations, this volume presents a broad conceptual framework addressing the role of social support in mental and physical health.The book is divided into four sections. The first provides some historical context as well as a conceptual overview of how social support might influence mental and physical health. The second discusses techniques for measuring social networks and support, and the third addresses the design ofdifferent types of support interventions. The final section presents some general comments on the volume and its implications for social support research and intervention. This resource is meant to aid researchers in understanding the conceptual criteria on which measurement and interventiondecisions should be made when studying the relations between social support and health. Furthermore, the information provided on both measurement and intervention will be valuable to practitioners interested in designing and evaluating prevention and treatment initiatives. Sponsored by the FetzerInstitute as a follow up to their successful 1995 publication, Measuring Stress, this book will provide the most up to date research on the effects of social support interventions on physical and mental health.

Table of Contents

Contributors	xi
Part I. Theoretical and Historical Perspectives
Social Relationships and Health	3	(26)
Sheldon Cohen
Benjamin H. Gottlieb
Lynn G. Underwood
Part II. Social Support Measures
Social Support Theory and Measurement	29	(24)
Brian Lakey
Sheldon Cohen
Measuring Social Integration and Social Networks	53	(33)
Ian Brissette
Sheldon Cohen
Teresa E. Seeman
Measuring Perceived and Received Social Support	86	(50)
Thomas A. Wills
Ori Shinar
Measuring Relationship Properties and Interactions Relevant to Social Support	136	(59)
Harry T. Reis
Nancy Collins
Part III. Social Support Interventions
Selecting and Planning Support Interventions	195	(26)
Benjamin H. Gottlieb
Support Groups	221	(25)
Vicki S. Helgeson
Benjamin H. Gottlieb
One-to-One Support Interventions: Home Visitation and Mentoring	246	(32)
John Eckenrode
Stephen Hamilton
Optimizing Support in the Natural network	278	(33)
Carolyn E. Cutrona
Valerie Cole
Part IV. Implications
Social Support Measurement and Interventions: Comments and Future Directions	311	(24)
Karen S. Rook
Lynn G. Underwood
Index	335