BEING AWARE: THE MEANING OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SOCIAL SUPPORT AND HEALTH AMONG INDEPENDENT OLDER WOMEN.
Contributors: University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Published: 1988
Number of pages: 100
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.
Description: Americans are aging and the majority of those aging are women. As a result of the rising numbers in the aging population, researchers are looking at health. The health of older women can have a bearing on women's social support, yet the relationship between health and social support lacks clarity.

The purposes of this study were to clarify the meanings of the concepts, health and social support, and to discover the meaning of the relationship between health and social support among independent older women. Clarification of the concepts and their interrelationship helps to make operational the definitions of the two concepts which aid researchers in adequately measuring the concepts.

Three research questions were answered by utilizing a descriptive grounded theory methodology. Those three questions were: (a) What is the meaning of health, (b) What is the meaning of social support, and (c) What is the relationship between health and social support among independent older women? After receiving study approval by the Institutional Review Board for Human Use, these questions were asked of 15 women.

A substantive theory was generated from the findings. Health meant being in harmony or balance, well-being, and "managing stress." Social support was the outcome of caring, acceptance, and trust. The meaning of the relationship between health and social support was being aware which had three stages.

The implications for nursing practice and nursing education dealt with the three answered research questions. Recommendations for further refinement of the theory and for future research were made.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 49-08, Section: B, page: 3111.

Thesis (D.S.N.)--UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM, 1988.

School code: 0005.