Relationship Factors
Relationship factors look at the personal connections people have in their communities. The way people get along with family, friends, romantic partners, neighbors, classmates, and co-workers can impact their health and happiness. These close relationships provide important social support that affects health in your community. Social support includes emotional help, information, and practical help from others. It is important for keeping up physical and mental health, especially when facing tough times.[] When people get good social support from their relationships, it can lower stress. Less stress means better immune system function, heart health, and more likelihood of healthy habits.[] The mix of social connections a person has is called their social network. It shows how well they are connected to others. People with big, strong, and stable social networks full of trusting relationships have more resources like social support, which leads to better health. Strong social networks and supportive relationships help health by creating unity and making it easier for people to work together.
[SE63] Health Behavior and Health Education, Part Three, Chapter Nine: Key Constructs Social Support. (2018). U Penn. https://www.med.upenn.edu/hbhe4/part3-ch9-key-constructs-social-support.shtml
[SE64] Gaea, S., Tracy, M., Hoggatt, K.J., DiMaggio, C., Karpati, A. (2011). Estimated Deaths Attributed to Social Factors in the United States. American Journal of Public Health, 101(8): 1465. https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/full/10.2105/AJPH.2010.300086