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Social Support, Negative Life Events and Mental Health

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Odd Steffen Dalgard ,
Sven Bj⊘rk  and
Kristian Tambs
Odd Steffen Dalgard*
Affiliation:
Centre for Social Network and Health, Ullevål Hospital
Sven Bj⊘rk
Affiliation:
Centre for Social Network and Health, Ullevål Hospital
Kristian Tambs
Affiliation:
National Institute of Public Health, Oslo
*
Dr Dalgard, Centre for Social Network and Health, Ullevål Hospital, Hudav. 4. etg. Kirkevein 166, 0407 Oslo, Norway
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Abstract

Background

In a 10-year follow-up of a survey from Oslo, 503 persons were reinterviewed using the same questionnaire.

Method

The questionnaire includes information about social support, ‘locus of control’ and mental health as well as negative life events and long-lasting mental strain during the year prior to the follow-up.

Results

The study confirms the “buffer hypothesis”, that social support protects against the development of mental disorder only when the individual is exposed to stressors, like negative life events. This buffering effect was especially strong for depression.

Conclusions

The buffering effect only applies to the ‘externals’ –those who have personality-related feelings of powerlessness and lack of control over their own lives. The ‘internals’ do not have the same need for social support to cope with life stressors, and have low symptom scores even when negative life events are combined with relative weak social support.

Type
Papers
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 166 , Issue 1 , January 1995 , pp. 29 - 34
Copyright
Copyright © 1995 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

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