Social support

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Social support is the physical and emotional comfort given to us by our family, friends, co-workers and others. It is knowing that we are part of a community of people who love and care for us, and value and think well of us. Social support is a way of categorizing the rewards of communication in a particular circumstance. An important aspect of support is that a message or communicative experience does not constitute support unless the receiver views it as such.

Many studies have demonstrated that social support acts as a moderating factor in the development of psychological and/or physical disease (such as clinical depression or hypertension) as a result of stressful life events. There is growing evidence to suggest that social support affects humans differently throughout life, suggesting that the need to receive and provide social support shifts across development.

[edit] Forms of Social Support

Support can come in many different forms; experts who study human relationships have identified several functions of social support:

Emotional Support - This is what people most often think of when they talk about social support. People are emotionally supportive when they tell us that they care about us and think well of us. For example, if you separated from your partner or lost your job, a close friend might call every day for the first few weeks afterwards just to see how you are doing and to let you know that he or she cares.

Informational Support - This happens when individuals in a person's social network supply needed information. For example, if you were at work and needed to know how to accomplish a particular task, the co-worker who provided the needed information would be giving informational support.

Sharing Points of View - Another way for people to help is to offer their opinion about how they view a particular situation, or how they would choose to handle it. In sharing points of view, we can develop a better understanding of our situation and the best way to handle it. For example, if you tell a friend about difficulties you are having with your teenage son, she may offer a point of view you hadn't considered, and this may help you to better address the situation with your child. When the points of view are comments about the other person, the comments may serve as personal feedback.

Personal Feedback - Some authors include this function as part of the informational function or as part of points of view. Personal feedback is information about the individual receiving the support. Some individuals request such information directly, but others will tell a story about themselves as a way of eliciting personal feedback. What is supportive about personal feedback is that the recipient regards the information as honest and believes the sender of the feedback is intending to help.

Practical Help or Instrumental Support - People who care about us give us practical help such as gifts of money or food, assistance with cooking, child care, or help moving house. This kind of support helps us complete the basic tasks of day-to-day life.