Five Psychological Constructs Of Social Support

Loneliness is a emotion that many people suffer from everyday. In “Why Personal Relationships Are Important” Charles Meadows notes, “A study of breast cancer patients found that those with fewer satisfying social connections experienced higher levels of depression, pain, and fatigue.” Due to those symptons, people seem to have fewer social connections because of these

Social isolation can have a significant impact on mental health. The studies done by the authors, show that those who are socially isolated experience more stress and cognitive decline. Cacioppo, Hawkely, Norman and Bernston (2011) and Hawkley and Cacioppo (2009) show that the lack of consistent human contact sometimes due to the unwillingness of others to befriend the mentally ill. Social isolation is both a cause and an effect of mental distress. When the person isolates more, they face more mental distress.

In accordance to the theory given by Adler, social interactions made by a person make important contributions in the larger community that may be beneficial on a larger scale. Level of the mental health of an individual is shown by the contributions that are made by an

For Participant 1 (P1), experience of loneliness followed by a loss of an attachment figure who he could trust and feel safe. This sense of safety is related to both his trust in others that they would be honest and stay with him. He values sharing and dialogue with trusting other(s) as he reflects on his life tasks and in developing a solid sense of self. His value in making a good decision for himself as well as people under his care is achieved through interactions with trusting others. A lack of those trusting others, it led him to feel alone despite of his acknowledgement of presence/availability of other people. His loneliness was compounded as he found himself needing cope with difficult situations alone. He places an emphasis on the

The impact of loneliness on physical health can also be better understood by the study conducted by Uchino and colleagues (1996). They found that social individuals have lower blood pressure, better immunity and lower levels of stress hormones than the socially isolated people. In contrast another study described by Arthur 2006 demonstrated that it is not yet clear that group therapy or socialization can improve the secondary prevention of Coronary heart Disease. After considering all the studies and arguments by different authors it can be conclude that it is necessary to do more research on the impact of socialization on physical health of individuals.

High-quality social relationships, wherein people experience camaraderie and happiness, yield substantial health benefits. For instance, social ties such as marriage and religious involvement have been linked to healthier choices with diet and exercise, possibly because these connections promote positive behavioral norms (Umberson and Montez, 2010). High-quality social relationships also promote mental health by offering individuals a sense of place within a meaningful environment. When people feel connected and supported, they tend to experience a greater sense of control, a psychological state shown to be both associated and causally linked to good health (Lachman and Weaver, 1998). Positive psychological effects of social relationships improve physical health by making it easier for the body to maintain chemical homeostasis over long periods of time by alleviating its “allostatic load” (Umberson and Montez, 2010). Ultimately, these components of high-quality social relationships make people less likely to get sick and die.

When one infant in a pair of prematurely born twins drew near death soon after birth, the doctors tied everything to save her, but the only thing that could improve her health was sharing the same crib with her sister. When they were placed in the same crib, the infant’s health immediately started to improve and she became healthy and strong(Townsend). This story of twin sisters shows just how important companionship is for people to thrive in life. With her twin there, the infant’s health immensely improved. This is why companionship is important: People need it to live long and happy lives. Without companions, humans will feel isolated, depressed, and even have a 50% increase in chances of premature death(Harvard Women’s Health Watch). John Steinbeck demonstrates this point in Of Mice and Men, which follows the life of two friends,

In “Chimpanzees’ Stress Level Lowers When a Pal is around”, Written By Los Angeles Times the central idea of this article is to grab the readers attention that having a friend makes you less stressful. In the first stanza it states “ it found that quality time with close companions significantly decreased stress hormone levels in the primates,” we have alot to learn from chimpanzee’s and how they contribute to humans today.“ Like humans, chimpanzee’s tend to have best friends, or bond partners with whom they feel close.” Having relationships with the people where closest to decreases stress.

The human species is inevitably a social species that has depended on other members since birth. We’re social creatures that need other people in order to be well and thrive. Naturally, surrounding ourselves with others and fostering close relationships are the

According to Siegal (2007), people are “wired to connect” in the sense that the lack of socio-environmental stimulation can have a detrimental impact upon one’s health (Taylor, 2002). For instance, studies have shown people experience physiological pain following social rejection, yet these symptoms substantially improve following social inclusion (Taylor, 2002). Therefore, an individuals’ perception of whom they in relation to their environment is fundamental to their psychological wellbeing (Fishbane, 2007 & Siegel, 2007).

Depression significantly predicted the ‘lonely not isolated’ category, participants who were never or rarely depressed were significantly less likely to be ‘lonely not isolated’ when compared to their counterparts who were frequently depressed. Similarly, living in close proximity to family also significantly reduced the likelihood of being ‘lonely not isolated.’ In contrast, low self-esteem and low levels of interpersonal control (Q2) significantly increased the likelihood of inclusion in the ‘lonely not isolated’

Social resources can be a health benefit because they aid our coping by changing our circumstances by making them appear less threatening. Social resources can help one relieve the emotional impact of stressful situations. In a study done by Cohen, Doyle, Turner, Alper, and Skoner (2003), it was found that higher levels of sociability correlated to lower levels of illness. Furthermore, it was found that having a “positive emotional style was associated with a lower risk of developing a cold” (Cohen, Doyle, et al. 2003; 393). Supporting what I mentioned above, having social ties means that ones has a larger network to draw support from – whether they are percieved are actual. One common trend is the importance of having a strong social support

Most studies utilized the The Experiences in Close Relationships Scale (Brennan, Clark, & Shaver, 1998) to assess attachment style. This scale rates the two dimensions of attachment, anxious and avoidant, using a Likert Scale of 1 (disagree strongly) to 7 (agree strongly) to respond to statements such as “I often worry about being abandoned” and “I don’t feel comfortable opening up to romantic partners.” It is common for descriptive statistics to reveal average scores of a sample for attachment style to be around a midpoint or less. Consequently, many of the participants in the studies are likely relatively neutral in terms of their attachment style. Whereas this may be representative of the population at large, it may fail to give further understanding of how attachment style and co-rumination interact. A solution to this dilemma could be to screen samples first for individuals who rank relatively high on insecure attachment to see how these individuals react to

This research will begin with choosing a specific population. The population chosen was the 25 year old college students with feeling of loneliness and social isolation. According to research social isolation may cause anxiety and loneliness in some individuals and also the effects on their quality of life and physical well-being. These are some general problems that some college students may be characterized with. (http://iisit.org/).

Swami Vivekananda once stated, "Relationships are more important than life, but it is important for those relationships to have life in them." This conveys that, the most precious thing you have are your relationships. But these relationships are only valuable when they are true and sincere. Consequently, someone can rely on the support of one who they trust when they have hardships, which can signify a valuable relationship and help a person overcome an obstacle. During the whole of the novel A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park and Lost Boy, Lost Girl: Escaping Civil War in Sudan by John Bul Dau and Martha Arual Akech, the characters Nya, Salva, John and Martha undergo multiple obstructions that challenge their ability to overcome obstacles with the little resources they have. All things considered the elaboration of Nya, Salva, John and Martha's narratives from A Long Walk to Water and Lost Boy, Lost Girl: Escaping Civil War in Sudan corroborate the theme an individual's are a person's most important support in times of adversity.