Social Support Research in Community Psychology

Abstract

Social support is a central concept in community psychology. It is a concept that attempts to capture helping transactions that occur between people who share the same households, schools, neighborhoods, workplaces, organizations, and other community settings. From our own experiences, we are all aware of the benefits that can occur, both tangible and intangible, when neighbors help neighbors in both everyday tasks and emergencies. We are aware that in response to disasters, entire communities can become mobilized in rendering help to family, friends, neighbors, and complete strangers. Intuitively, we understand how the degree of caring expressed between community members can contribute to our psychological sense of community and the perceived safety of the places in which we live. In some of the most challenging moments of our lives, when we are faced with profound loss, serious threats to health, or personal adversity, we often seek out others for information, reassurance, advice, or concrete aid. Because our experience of social support is common and at times dramatic, it is easy to comprehend that as social scientists we became fascinated with trying to measure these natural resources, understanding their relation to adapting to adversity, and harnessing their power in planned interventions