Social Relations and Mental Health

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This competing renewal application seeks funding to mine unprecedented data on the associations between social relations and mental health. We have rich cross-sectional and longitudinal data and the opportunity to conduct cross-national comparisons. We have also extended this work by collecting complementary reports of principal and core network respondents concerning their social relations and health, especially under stressful circumstances. Our specific aims are to 1. Examine patterns of stability and change over 12 years in social relations (structure, support exchanges, quality), stress (life events, daily hassles), and health (mental and physical), of individuals who are at different stages of the life course. 2. Test, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally, the influence of stress in the convoy model and the hypothesized associations among social relations, stress and health. 3. Test, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally, the effect of self efficacy in the convoy mode and the hypothesized associations among social relations, efficacy and health. 4. Perform a limited replication by conducting parallel analyses using the Berlin Aging Study (BASE) data, a unique longitudinal study that includes multiple waves and considerable overlapping measures of social relations, stress, efficacy, and health. 5. Further extend research on social relations and health, both theoretically and methodologically, by comparing principal and core network members' assessments of stressful life events, social relations and well-being and the degree to which each predicts the principal respondent's well-being. In sum, we believe that the proposed analyses use the unique longitudinal data of the "Social Relations and Mental Health" study to afford an unprecedented, cost-effective opportunity to examine, both theoretically and methodologically, the processes and mechanisms through which social relations and stress affect mental health and depressive disorders. Ultimately, these analyses should be useful to policy makers charged with developing policies to maximize the health and well-being of individuals of all ages; but especially among the fastest growing older age cohorts in this society.