SOCIAL NETWORKS, SOCIAL SUPPORT, AND GENERAL WELL-BEING OF LESBIANS WITH CHRONIC ILLNESS OR HIDDEN DISABILITIES (STIGMA, WOMEN, DEVIANCE, HEALTH, HOMOSEXUALITY).
Contributors: University of California, San Francisco.
Published: 1985
Number of pages: 265
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.
Description: A survey of 66 lesbians with chronic physical illness or hidden disabilities described their social networks, social support, and general psychological well-being. Relationships of lesbian and chronic illness identities, social networks, and social support to general well-being were examined. Characteristics of support and non-support for both potentially stigmatizing identities were explored in interviews with 22 participants.

The mean general well-being score was 71.7 as compared to 78.1 and 77.7 for healthy women in 2 other studies. General well-being was positively correlated with duration of (.35, p = .005) and satisfaction with relationships with network members (.33, p = .008). Greater age and higher social class were correlated with higher well being (.29, p = .019, .21, p = .036 respectively).

Network support for the lesbian identity was positively correlated with knowledge of the identity (.59, p = .00), percent of lesbians (.72, p = .000), women (.46, p = .000), and non-kin (.37, p = .003) in the network, and support for the chronic illness (.36, p = .004). Support for the chronic illness identity was positively correlated with knowledge of this identity (.61, p = .000), availability (.27, p = .033), general supportiveness of network members (.32, p = .010), and the participant's satisfaction with the relationship (.25, p = .048). Support for both identities was positively correlated with knowledge of the lesbian (r = .29, p = .004) and chronic illness identities (.27, p = .011) and negatively correlated with density (-.21, p = .039). Density was the number of other relationships among network members.

Non-supportive and supportive behaviors for each identity were similar. Non-support included physical and verbal abuse, avoiding interaction, disbelief in existence of the identity, being blamed for the identity, minimizing or maximizing the consequences of the identity and lack of collaboration in meeting illness-related needs. Support included belief in existence of identity, willingness to interact, acceptance of the identity, and normalizing the identity through collaboration in meeting identity-related needs. Conditions affecting interpretation of behavior as supportive or non-supportive included visibility, chronicity, and variability of identity, timing of support, and intimacy of the relationship. Other lesbians and chronically ill were particularly supportive.

Nursing implications included acknowledgement of the potential stigma of being lesbian and chronically ill, self-exploration to identify one's own supportive and non-supportive behaviors so that nurses can provide a safe environment for disclosure of these identities, and assisting chronically ill lesbians to connect with like others for support.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 46-05, Section: B, page: 1510.

Thesis (D.N.S.)--UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO, 1985.

School code: 0034.