Georgia Parent Support Network non-Profit Program

Georgia Parent Support Network non-Profit Program



Georgia Parent Support Network non-Profit Program

Chapter II

Literature Review

Research studies have repeatedly found that people who report a high level of social support enjoy enhanced health and well-being (Cohen and Wills, 1985; Pierce et al., 1996 and Sarason et al., 1990). For example, social support is associated with improved physical health ( Cohen & Wills, 1985), less depression ( Cohen and Wills, 1985; Cutrona and Russell, 1987 and Roberts and Gotlib, 1997), and less loneliness ( Jones and Moore, 1987 and Rook, 1987). The process by which social support produces these benefits is complex, as studies have shown that well-being is uniquely predicted by factors such as the receipt of support, the perception of the support network, and characteristics of the social environment ( Rhodes & Lakey, 1999). However, the benefits of social support are most strongly related to the perception that support is available ( Barrera, 1986 and Wetherington and Kessler, 1986). In other words, the highest levels of well-being are found among people who believe that they have a high level of social support, regardless of how much support they receive or how many people they know.

Social support is a particularly important issue for older adults as common life events may jeopardize the support networks of this age group. The elderly are often faced with bereavement and the accompanying loss of support when a loved one dies (Minkler, 1985), and when older adults make the transition from work to retirement, they often experience a geographic move that can upend their support system ( Minkler, 1985). Furthermore, older adults may have physical impairments or chronic diseases that limit their ability to interact with others ( Newsom and Schulz, 1996 and Penninx et al., 1998). Indeed, empirical work has demonstrated that greater social support among the elderly is associated with better physical health ( Auslander and Litwin, 1991 and Cutrona et al., 1986), improved life satisfaction ( Aquino, Russell, Cutrona, & Altmaier, 1996), less loneliness ( Russell, 1996), and lower depression ( Dean et al., 1990; Kogan et al., 1995; Krause et al., 1989; Lynch et al., 1999 and Russell and Cutrona, 1991). Again, health and well-being are most strongly predicted by older adults' perception of available support rather than their actual receipt of support ( Auslander and Litwin, 1991 and Newsom and Schulz, 1996).

Despite the apparent importance of social support for the health and well-being of the elderly, it is possible that the observed relationships between social support and health outcomes may simply be due to elderly individuals' dispositional negative affectivity, or NA (also termed neuroticism). As described by Watson and Clark (1984), NA is a disposition to experience negative emotions influencing cognition and self-concept. Individuals with high NA tend to view themselves and the world more negatively, and they tend to experience greater distress than low-NA individuals, even in the absence of stressors ( Watson & Clark, 1984). There is evidence that older adults high in NA report more ...