Barriers to Social Support and Support Received from Their Families of Origin among Gay Men with HIV/AIDS

Although heterosexuals tend to seek help primarily from the traditional family during the crisis of an illness (Croog, Lipson, & Levine, 1972; Finlayson, 1976; Weinert & Long, 1993), gay men with HIV/AIDS prefer partners and friends as sources of support to their families of origin (Hays, Catania, McKusick, & Coates, 1990; Hays, Chauncey, & Tobey, 1990; Schwarzer, Dunkel-Schetter, & Kemeny, 1994). Because social support is an important resource in a gay man's ability to adapt to HIV/AIDS (Green, 1994), social workers need to develop a better understanding of the relationship between men and their families of origin so that supportive rather than stressful interactions can be encouraged, To provide this information the study discussed in this article surveyed gay men with HIV/AIDS about the type and amount of support they received from their families, their satisfaction with this support, and the barriers they perceived to receiving support from their families of origin. LITERATURE REVIEW Social Support Research suggests that the social networks of gay men play a significant role in the individual's adaptation to HIV/AIDS. There is evidence that psychological functioning (adjustment to illness, more active coping, depression, hopelessness, mood disturbance, self-esteem, anxiety, and hostility) is related to satisfaction with, or perceived availability of, social support (Hays, Turner, & Coates, 1992; Kurdek & Siesky, 1990; Leserman, Perkins, & Evans, 1992; Namir, 1986; Namir, Wolcott, Fawzy, & Alumbaugh, 1987; Pakenham, Dadds, & Terry, 1994; Siegel, Karus, & Raveis, 1997; Turner, Hays, & Coates, 1993; Wolcott, Namir, Fawzy, Gottlieb, & Mitsuyasu, 1986; Wolf et al., 1991; Zich & Temoschok, 1987). Although the family of origin is generally an important component of the support system of individuals who are experiencing the crisis of a physical illness, gay men with HIV/AIDS are more likely to seek and receive social support from friends and partners than from the family of origin (Hays, Catania, et al., 1990; Hays, Chauncey, et al., 1990; Hays, McKusick, et al., 1994; Schwarzer et al., 1994). The family of origin also is perceived as less effective in providing help than friends and partners (Blasband, 1990; Britton, Zarski, & Hobfoll, 1993; Hays, Catania, et al., 1990; Hays, Chauncey, et al., 1990; Hays, McKusick, et al., 1994). Social support from friends, but not family, has been significantly related to lower distress levels among men with HIV/AIDS in several studies (Britton et al., 1993; Hays, Catania, et al., 1990; Hays, Chauncey, et al., 1990; Hays, McKusick, et al., 1994). Although initially the family of origin is a less important source of support, this situation may change over the course of the illness. Men with a diagnosis of AIDS are more likely to seek or receive support from their families of origin than those who have HIV are (Hays, Catania, et al., 1990; Schwartzer et al., 1994). Catania, Turner, Kyung-Hee, and Coates (1992) found that family support was more effective than peer support in helping gay men with AIDS cope with death anxiety. Barriers to Support There is currently no research that directly addresses the question of the barriers that men perceive in obtaining support from their families. The literature reviewed in this section is based on the clinical literature, on the empirical literature that has examined barriers to care perceived by men in relation to their support network in general, and on some of the empirically based research on social support that has attempted to explain why men prefer peers to family as sources of support. The willingness of gay men to approach their families of origin for social support may be related to the family's past acceptance or rejection of their sexual orientation (Blasband, 1990; Kadushin, 1996; Perry, Ryan, Fogel, Fishman, & Jacobsberg, 1990). …