Theoretical foundation of social support The concept of social support has been subject of review in different perspectives over decade and no clear cut definition has emerged as different scholar view social support from different angle. A lot of documented facts has emerged on the concept “social support and its influence on physical and psychological health outcomes for over three decades. Social support has been viewed from different angles by different scholars since the work of Caplan (1974, 1976), Cassel (1976), and Cobb (1976). Social support has been defined and viewed in various dimensions depending on issues , the issues that had been reviewed in relation to social support concept includes childbirth experience and complications, …show more content…
Social support concept There are lot diversity in the operationalisation of social concept, however social support concepts can be organized into three broad categories: social embeddedness, perceived social support, and enacted support (Barrera, 1981; Barrera, Sandler, & Ramsey, 1981; Gottlieb, 1983; Heller & Swindle, 1983) Social embeddedness Social embeddedness refers to the connections or connectedness that individuals have to significant others in their social environments (Barrera, 1986; Langford, Bowsher, Maloney and Lillis, 1987). Being socially connected is a central element in one's "psychological sense of community” (Sarason, 1974). social embeddedness can be viewed inform of social ties such as family , siblings, friends ,participation in community organizations which serve as social support resources provide support during a crisis period. Social embeddedness can also be explained in relation to social network and social network analysis. Social network refers to to the web of social relationships that surround individuals, it provides the structural medium that form the interactive field and process through which social support is provided …show more content…
Enacted Support Enacted Support refers to as actions that others perform when they render assistance to a focal person. Measures of enacted social support involves assessment of what individuals actually do when they provide support. Types of social support Social support has been measured in numerous ways. House (1981) identified four broad types of supportive behaviors or acts which include: emotional support; instrumental support; informational support and appraisal support. Emotional support Emotional support involves the provision of empathy, love, trust, and caring and ranked as the most important category of all other social support (House, 1981; Gottlieb, 1978). Emotional support is usually communicated inform of information and other non-verbal expressions which implies that the individual is loved and cared for, is esteemed and values and also denote that the individual belong to a network of mutual obligation (Cobb, 1976). Instrumental