Research Topic · Peer-Reviewed

Social Support

Social support refers to the emotional, informational, and practical assistance that people receive from their relationships, including family, friends, partners, colleagues, and wider community and social networks. It is commonly described in terms of emotional support, such as care and reassurance; instrumental su…

Curated from this journal's research 📚 12 peer-reviewed articles cited Cited 62× across the literature 🗓 Reviewed August 2026

Overview

Social support refers to the emotional, informational, and practical assistance that people receive from their relationships, including family, friends, partners, colleagues, and wider community and social networks. It is commonly described in terms of emotional support, such as care and reassurance; instrumental support, such as tangible help and resources; informational support, such as advice and guidance; and appraisal support, which helps a person evaluate a situation. Research consistently associates strong social support with better mental and physical health, including resilience to stress, lower rates of depression and anxiety, and improved coping with chronic illness, while social isolation is linked to poorer outcomes. Within the journal's coverage of alternative medicine and mind-body practices and related health topics, studies have examined perceived social support and quality of life among social workers, the relationship between depression and social support in people with disability, biopsychosocial models of self-management in type 2 diabetes, and the effects of social isolation in older adults. These reflect a broad interest in how supportive relationships shape wellbeing and recovery. This page gathers peer-reviewed, open-access research relevant to social support and its role in health, coping, and quality of life.

Research published in this journal

12 peer-reviewed articles, ranked by relevance. Each links to its DOI.

How this research is being cited

The 12 articles above have been cited 62 times in the scholarly literature. Citation data via OpenAlex and Crossref, updated Jun 2026.

A sample of recent works citing this journal's research on Social Support, linking to each citing work.

Editorial oversight

Curated from peer-reviewed research published in Alternative Medicine and Mind Body Practices.

Journal editorial board
Akiko Tokinobu · Japan Bruno Bordoni · Italy Ulrike Halsband · Germany

This page summarises published research for orientation; it is not medical or professional advice.