Social cohesion, social support, and health among Latinos in the United States

The role of individual versus community level social connections in promoting health is an important factor to consider when addressing Latino health. This analysis examines the relationships between social support, social cohesion, and health in a sample of Latinos in the United States. Using data from the National Latino and Asian American Study, the analysis uses ordered logistic regression to explore the relationships of family support, friend support, family cultural conflict, and neighborhood social cohesion with self-rated physical and mental health, taking into account language proficiency and use, nativity, and sociodemographic variables. Family support, friend support, and neighborhood social cohesion were positively related to self-rated physical and mental health, and family cultural conflict was negatively related when controlled only for sex and age. After controlling for education, income, and other demographic measures, only family support was found to have a weak association with self-rated physical health; however, the relationship seemed to be mediated by language. In contrast, family support and family cultural conflict were strongly associated with self-rated mental health, after controlling for language, education, income, and other demographic measures. The study did not find neighborhood social cohesion to be significantly related to either self-rated physical or mental health, after accounting for the effects of the other social connection variables. Language of interview did not explain the highly significant effects of language proficiency and use. Social connections are important for health and mental health, but language and other sociodemographic factors seem to be related to how Latinos establish these social linkages. Further investigation into the role of language in the development and maintenance of social connections may help unravel the mechanisms by which they promote or decrease health.     

The relationship between health status, social support and satisfaction with medical care among patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the effect of physical and mental health status and social support on patient satisfaction with health care in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). STUDY DESIGN: Using a cross-sectional design, 220 SLE patients were recruited from rheumatology departments in two hospitals in the Montreal (Canada) area. Data comprised physician-rated indices of health status and patient-completed questionnaires. MEASURES: Independent variables included demographics, disease duration, physician-rated indices of disease activity (SLAM-R) and disease damage (SLICC/ACR), patient self-reported health status (SF-36), and perceived social support (ISEL). Patient satisfaction with medical care (PSQ-IV) was the dependent variable. ANALYSES: Univariate analyses were performed to describe the sample and examine univariate associations between the independent variables and patient satisfaction with medical care. A hierarchical multiple linear regression analysis was computed to determine the relative importance of physician-rated indices of health status, self-reported physical and mental health status and social support on patient satisfaction after controlling for demographic variables. RESULTS: A multivariate hierarchical regression computed to predict patient satisfaction included the following variables in the equation: age, education, income (step 1), disease duration, SLAM-R, SLICC/ACR (step 2), mental and physical health status (step 3), and perceived social support (step 4). Less education (P< 0.01), better self-reported mental (P< 0.05) and physical health status (P< 0.005) and higher perceived social support (P< 0.005) were significant predictors of patient satisfaction (R2 = 0.15, P< 0.0001). CONCLUSION: The findings suggest that self-reported physical and mental health status and social support are more important than clinical status variables in understanding patient satisfaction with medical care.     

Marital status and longevity in the United States population

PURPOSE: To investigate the relation between marital status and survival. DATA SOURCES: The US 1989 national health interview survey (NHIS) merged with the 1997 US national death index. RESULTS: Among 1989 NHIS respondents, 5876 (8.77%) died before 1997 and 61 123 (91.23%) were known to be alive. Controlling for demographic and socioeconomic characteristics, the death rate for people who were unmarried was significantly higher than it was for those who were married and living with their spouses. Although the effect was significant for all categories of unmarried, it was strongest for those who had never married. The never married effect was seen for both sexes, and was significantly stronger for men than for women. For the youngest age group (19-44), the predominant causes of early death among adults who had never married were infectious disease (presumably HIV) and external causes. In the middle aged and older men and women, the predominant causes were cardiovascular and other chronic diseases. CONCLUSION: Current marriage is associated with longer survival. Among the not married categories, having never been married was the strongest predictor of premature mortality. It is difficult to assess the causal effect of marital status from these observational data.     

Relations between Internet use, socio-economic status (SES), social support and subjective health

This study aimed to explore relations between Internet use, socio-economic status (SES), social support and subjective health. Participants were from representative samples between 15 and 80 years of age from seven different European countries. Two different survey datasets were used: (i) eHealth trends (eHT; N = 7934) and (ii) the European social survey (ESS2; N = 11248). Internet users who had used the Internet for health purposes were compared with Internet users who had not used it for health purposes. Structural equation modelling was used to assess the relationships between SES, Internet use, social support and subjective health. Use of other media was compared to Internet use in relation to social support and subjective health. Internet use was found to be more closely related to social support and subjective health than use of other media. Internet use was also found to be a plausible mediator between SES and subjective health, especially through interacting with social support.     

Self rating of health is associated with stressful life events, social support and residency in East and West Berlin shortly after the fall of the wall

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To compare the health status and factors influencing the health of populations that had previously lived under different political systems. DESIGN: Cross sectional health and social survey using postal interviews. The relation between self reported health and psychosocial factors (stressful life events, social support, education, health promoting life style and health endangering behaviour) was investigated. To determine East-West differences a logistic regression model including interaction terms was fitted. SETTING: East and West Berlin shortly after reunification 1991. PARTICIPANTS: Representative sample of 4430 Berlin residents aged 18 years and over (response rate 63%). RESULTS: Of all respondents, 15.4% rated their health as unsatisfactory. Residents of East Berlin rated their health more frequently as unsatisfactory than residents of West Berlin (Or(age adjusted)= 1.29, 95%CI 1.08, 1.52), these differences occurred predominantly in the over 60 years age group. Logistic regression showed significant independent effects of stressful life events, social support, education, and health promoting life style on self rated health. The effects of education and health promoting life style were observed to be more pronounced in the western part of Berlin. Old age and female sex showed a stronger association with unsatisfactory health status in the eastern part of Berlin. CONCLUSIONS: For subjects aged over 60 years there was evidence that living in the former East Berlin had an adverse effect on health compared with West Berlin. The impact of education and a health promoting lifestyle on self rated health seemed to be weaker in a former socialist society compared with that of a Western democracy. This study supports an "additive model" rather than a "buffering model" in explaining the effects of psychosocial factors on health.     

住院康复期精神分裂症患者心理健康状况与社会支持的调查

目的:探讨住院康复期精神分裂症患者心理健康状况与社会支持的相关性。方法:采用症状自评量表和社会支持量表对住院康复期137例精神分裂症患者进行问卷调查。结果:患者的心理健康状况较常模差;患者的社会支持度较常模低(P<0.01)。结论:社会支持与住院康复期精神分裂症患者的心理健康密切相关,护士在患者住院治疗的同时,应充分评估和利用患者的社会支持,促进身心康复。     

Acculturation stress, social support, and self-rated health among Latinos in California

This study looks at the effect of social support mechanisms as potential moderators and mediators of the relationship between stressful acculturation experiences and self-ratings of physical health. Data are from a sample of 3012 Mexican-origin adults aged 18–59 sampled under a probabilistic, stratified, cluster sampling design in Fresno County, California. While acculturation stressors (i.e., discrimination, legal status, and language conflict) all had a gross positive effect on the likelihood of rating oneself in fair/poor health, only legal status stress had a net effect. In addition, greater numbers of peers and family members in the United States, and a higher reliance on religious support mechanisms decreased the likelihood of reporting fair/poor health. However, levels of both instrumental social support and religious support seeking moderated the (nonsignificant, main) effects of discrimination on physical health. This study indicates that physical health is negatively associated with acculturation stressors and positively associated with social support; discrimination is only associated with poorer physical health among those for whom social support is lacking.     

Social networks, social support, health and HIV-positive gay men

The present pilot study explored the experiences of social support on the part of a number of HIV-positive gay men. It drew upon the growing body of literature that highlights links between social support, and the health and well-being of people with chronic illnesses. In particular, it drew upon the way in which social network analysis can be used to illustrate patterns of both emotional support and instrumental support. The study informants were 30 HIV-positive gay men who were recruited through community support organisations which they accessed at the time of the study. The findings highlighted patterns of support among members of this marginalised community. At a time when access to treatment is extending the life expectancy of people infected with HIV and when, in the UK at least, there are major changes in the funding of HIV services, this paper raises pertinent questions about the impact of social support on people suffering from this illness and about the development of appropriate services.     

Subjective social status and health in young people

Health inequalities according to objective socioeconomic position (SEP), have been well-documented. Yet, in young people the associations are negligible. Recently, research on the association of subjective social status (SSS), and adult health has begun to accumulate. Studies on young people are rare and describe societies with large income inequalities. Here, we investigated the association between SSS and health, while controlling for own and familial SEP. The study population consisted of 15-year-olds (N = 2369) who have grown up in a context of low social inequalities. Data were derived from surveys carried out in 2004 in 29 secondary schools in Helsinki. The SSS was measured with an indicator specific to and validated for adolescents (a societal ladder). Outcome measures were self-rated health, health complaints, presence of limiting longstanding illness (LLI) and GHQ-12 caseness (indicating psychiatric morbidity). The SSS associated strongly with all health measures. Adjusting for objective socioeconomic measures attenuated the associations; although they all remained statistically significant apart from LLI among girls. The subjective assessment contributes to health inequalities in young people largely independent of objective SEP. Subjective ratings most probably capture aspects of social hierarchy that are more subtle and less well represented than in conventional measures.     

临床医生社会支持与心理健康关系

目的 探讨社会支持、心理控制源对临床医生心理健康的影响.方法 采用症状自评量表(SCL-90)、社会支持评定量表(SSRS)和内控性、有势力他人及机遇量表(IPC)对276名临床医生进行问卷调查.结果 临床医生的心理健康状况总体良好,优于全国青年常模;临床医生的心理健康各因子与心理控制源中的有势力他人因子呈正相关(P≤0.05);心理健康中的人际敏感因子、抑郁因子和精神病性因子与心理控制源和社会支持的各因子相关明显.回归分析表明,有势力他人与主观支持因子对临床医生心理健康具有明显预测作用.结论 临床医生的心理健康状况良好;心理控制源中的有势力他人因子和社会支持对其心理健康状况具有一定的预测作用.     

The relative contributions of race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, health, and social relationships to life satisfaction in the United States

Purpose  To evaluate racial/ethnic disparities in life satisfaction and the relative contributions of socioeconomic status (SES; education, income, employment status, wealth), health, and social relationships (social ties, emotional support) to well-being within and across racial/ethnic groups. Methods  In two cross-sectional, representative samples of U.S. adults (the 2001 National Health Interview Survey and the 2007 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System; combined n > 350,000), we compared life satisfaction across Whites, Hispanics, and Blacks. We also evaluated the extent to which SES, health, and social relationships ‘explained’ racial/ethnic group differences and compared the magnitude of variation explained by life satisfaction determinants across and within these groups. Results  Relative to Whites, both Blacks and Hispanics were less likely to be very satisfied. Blacks were somewhat more likely to report being dissatisfied. These differences were reduced or eliminated with adjustment for SES, health, and social relationships. Together, SES and health explained 12–15% of the variation in life satisfaction, whereas social relationships explained an additional 10–12% of the variance. Conclusions  Racial/ethnic life satisfaction disparities exist for Blacks and Hispanics, and these differences are largest when comparing those reporting being ‘satisfied’ to ‘very satisfied’ versus ‘dissatisfied’ to ‘satisfied.’ SES, health, and social relationships were consistently associated with life satisfaction, with emotional support having the strongest association with life satisfaction.     

Disability and health status: ethnic differences among women in the United States

STUDY OBJECTIVES: There are few data describing disability and health status for ethnic groups. The disablement process involves social influences, which may include minority status. Cross sectional data were examined to investigate the relation of ethnicity to disability. DESIGN: A stratified random digit dialled sample of women aged 40 and older. Disability and health status were measured as functional and activity limitations, work disability, and days of poor physical and mental health. SETTING: United States. PARTICIPANTS: Women interviewed by telephone included 774 white, 749 African-American, 660 Hispanic, and 739 Native American women. MAIN RESULTS: The prevalence of disability was higher among minority women when classified by general health status, and the need for personal care assistance. There was a striking excess of work disability: 3.5% of white women compared with 7.1% to 10.3% for minority women. The differences were reduced when adjusted for other risk factors and socioeconomic status. White and minority women reported more similar disability when it was defined by poor mental and physical health days. CONCLUSIONS: Disability is correlated with social and demographic characteristics as well as medical diagnoses. Ethnicity also is associated with disability and may be part of a social context for disablement. Future research should concentrate on the temporal sequence of disability. Consistent definitions of disability will facilitate this research.     

煤工尘肺患者心理与自我和谐和社会支持关系

目的 了解煤工尘肺患者心理健康的状况,及自我和谐与社会支持对患者心理健康的影响.方法 采用90项症状清单、自我和谐量表和社会支持评定量表对重庆某企业煤工尘肺患者进行问卷调查.结果 212名煤工尘肺患者均为男性,年龄在35～58岁,平均年龄46.7岁;患者90项症状清单的总分为(150.92±0.37)分,低于全国常模,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05);心理健康与自我和谐和社会支持的多个因子呈明显相关(P<0.05或P<0.01);多元逐步回归分析显示,进入方程的自变量为自我与经验的不和谐、客观支持、总体自我和谐、社会支持总分,其标准化偏回归系数分别为0.442、-0.215、0.194、-0.086.结论 煤工尘肺患者心理健康水平普遍低于全国平均水平,心理健康与自我和谐和社会支持有着密切关系.     

Income-related reporting heterogeneity in self-assessed health: evidence from France

This paper tests for income-related reporting heterogeneity in self-assessed health (SAH). It also constructs a synthetic measure of clinical health to decompose the effect of income on SAH into an effect on clinical health (which is called a health production effect) and a reporting heterogeneity effect. We find health production effects essentially for low-income individuals, and reporting heterogeneity for the choice between the medium labels, i.e. 'fair' vs 'good' and for high-income individuals. As such, SAH should be used cautiously for the assessment of income-related health inequalities in France. It is however possible to minimize the reporting heterogeneity bias by converting SAH into a binary variable for poor health vs other health statuses.     

The association between unemployment status and physical health among veterans and civilians in the United States

This study analyzed data from the 2012 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System to examine the association between unemployment status and physical health among a sample of 170,924 civilians and 12,129 veterans (aged 18–50 years). Multivariate regression analysis was used to test the interaction effect between employment status and veteran/civilian status on physical health. Veterans who were unemployed long term (longer than 27 weeks) reported a significantly greater number of days with poor physical health than civilians who experienced long-term unemployment. Timely prevention and intervention efforts to integrate veterans into the workforce could lead to substantially improved physical health outcomes. Public health policies and programs that are funded to assist veterans in securing and maintaining gainful employment can have lasting implications for their overall improved health and physical well-being.     

复员退伍军人精神病患者社会功能及社会支持调查分析

（目的）了解复员退伍军人精神病患者的社会功能缺陷及社会支持状况。（方法）采用住院精神分裂症社会功能缺陷筛选量表（ＳＤＳＳ－Ｉ）社会支持评定量表（ＳＳＲＳ）对３５０例住院患者进行评定。（结果）３５０例患者ＳＤＳＳ－Ｉ的６个项目有缺陷，ＳＳＲＳ的呈负相关。（结论）开展文体活动，缩短住院时间，增加社会接触时间，可减轻患者的社会功能缺陷。     

Social support, volunteering and health around the world: cross-national evidence from 139 countries

High levels of social capital and social integration are associated with self-rated health in many developed countries. However, it is not known whether this association extends to non-western and less economically advanced countries. We examine associations between social support, volunteering, and self-rated health in 139 low-, middle- and high-income countries. Data come from the Gallup World Poll, an internationally comparable survey conducted yearly from 2005 to 2009 for those 15 and over. Volunteering was measured by self-reports of volunteering to an organization in the past month. Social support was based on self-reports of access to support from relatives and friends. We started by estimating random coefficient (multi-level) models and then used multivariate logistic regression to model health as a function of social support and volunteering, controlling for age, gender, education, marital status, and religiosity. We found statistically significant evidence of cross-national variation in the association between social capital variables and self-rated health. In the multivariate logistic model, self-rated health were significantly associated with having social support from friends and relatives and volunteering. Results from stratified analyses indicate that these associations are strikingly consistent across countries. Our results indicate that the link between social capital and health is not restricted to high-income countries but extends across many geographical regions regardless of their national-income level.     

护士职业倦怠现状及与社会支持关系

目的考察护士职业倦怠现状及与社会支持的关系。方法采用职业倦怠问卷-服务行业版(MBI-SS)、社会支持评定量表(SSRS)和自编社会支持问卷对310名护士进行问卷调查。结果护士职业倦怠的总检出率为41.9%;工龄、受教育程度、婚姻状况、工作科室对护士职业倦怠有一定影响,职业倦怠总分与社会支持各维度均呈显著负相关(r=-0.169～-0.537,P<0.01);工作单位支持、客观支持、对支持的利用度、朋友支持以及社会团体支持对职业倦怠的一个或多个维度具有负向预测作用(Beta=-0.098～-0.461,P<0.05)。结论应重视护士职业倦怠问题,并充分考虑社会支持对职业倦怠的影响。     

Social class, social support and obesity risk in children

Summary Selected characteristics of the social environment are tested as predictors of children's risk for obesity. Data were collected during the summer of 1991 at the University of South Alabama Springhill Paediatric Clinic (Mobile, AL, USA). Data were collected on 77 children, aged 2·5–5 years, and their primary caretaker. Obesity risk was measured by the child's weight for height score and calorie intake. Caretaker's socio-economic status, marital status, and social support predict children's obesity risk for this sample. Lower social class position, lower expressive social support, and unmarried status of the caretaker are associated with a higher calorie intake and a higher weight for height score in the child.