Aging and Relationships

By Brian Smith

Found some interesting analysis of belonging, relationships and aging over here.

Studies of relational benefits have focused on three types for social support:

* instrumental support- tangible benefits such as money, physical resources
* informational support- sharing knowledge, information
* emotional support- sense of belonging, value from perceiving others as caring and willing to give of themselves for you. Emotional support promotes resiliency and positive ways of thinking about oneself and the situation....

Definitions of Social Support vary.

* One identifies social support as access to and the use of individuals and formal & informal groups to assist with the challenges of life.
* Another definition includes access to resources in the form of relationships which can be depended upon as needed.
* Yet another describes social support as the positive interactions in a person's social environment. The enduring pattern of social ties that assists in maintaining psychological and/or physical integrity over time.

Six categories of relational components of social support have been identified:

* attachment: emotional closeness and sense of security
* social integration: a sense of companionship, shared interests and activities
* opportunity for : being valued for what one does for one's partner
* reassurance of worth: feedback that one's personal attributes are valued
* a sense of reliable alliance: others, particularly family, are available to help in time of need
* provision of guidance: information and advice offered by others.
(Weiss, 1974)

Hansson, R.O. and Carpenter, B. N. (1994). Relationships in Old Age: coping with the challenge of transition. Guilford Press, New York, NY.

Hooyman, N.A. and Kiyak, H. A., (2002). Social Gerontology, Allyn & Bacon, Boston.

Weiss, R. S. (1974). The provisions of social relationships. In Z. Rubin (Ed.), Doing unto others (pp.17-26. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall