CHAPTER 7

Social Support, Social Capital,

Social Exclusion, and Racism

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Social support concerns ________.
   1. the amount of social interactions
   2. the number of people in your closest circle
   3. the amount of people with whom you interact at least twice a week
   4. the quality of social interactions within one’s social networks
2. Durkheim saw social integration as a function of ________.
   1. social facts and social inequality
   2. attachment and regulation
   3. capacity building
   4. social gradient in health
3. The “Roseto effect” refers to ________.
   1. health protective effects stemming from social support and social cohesion
   2. the effect of immunization on population health
   3. the impact of healthy diet enforced at the community level
   4. the impact of social inequality on population health
4. Supportive, predictable, social norms can be ________.
   1. a source of isolation for many people
   2. a source of stress for many people
   3. protective of health and wellbeing
   4. disruptive to health and wellbeing
5. ________ discipline members into adhering to norms, beliefs, and values, many of which are potentially health enhancing.
   1. Social networks
   2. Laws
   3. Institutions
   4. Governments
6. Social support includes ________.
   1. emotional support and the frequency of contact with others
   2. frequency of contact with others and the total number of contacts
   3. informational and instrumental support
   4. informational support and the size of the social network
7. The following statement regarding social networks is FALSE: ________.
   1. The larger and denser your personal network, the better your physical and mental health
   2. All types of social networks are beneficial for one’s health
   3. Social networks may improve access to resources
   4. Networks discipline members into adhering to norms, beliefs, and values
8. ________ is NOT one of the examples of availability of social support.
   1. Listening to a friend who is in trouble
   2. Providing information about the best way to find a job
   3. Having a large number of friends on Facebook
   4. Lending a car to a friend
9. Social networks can be characterized by all of the following EXCEPT ________.
   1. the number of contacts
   2. frequency of contacts
   3. density of the network
   4. emotional support
10. According to the social network theory, Ella is least likely to smoke if ________.
    1. she is associating with smokers
    2. she is associating with non-smokers
    3. she lives in a community where many people smoke
    4. one or both of her parents smoked when she was a child
11. According to the social network theory, the best approach to improving immunization rates among a population is to ________.
    1. advertise the benefits of immunization in physicians’ offices and community hospitals
    2. advertise the benefits of immunization on national television during evening news to increase exposure
    3. create a “viral campaign” and spread the message through people’s social media networks
    4. reduce poverty in the community and to improve access to vaccines
12. Contact theory states that ________.
    1. as individuals and groups gain experience with those different from themselves, norms of tolerance and cooperation develop
    2. under the threat from diverse groups, intra-group solidarity breaks down
    3. growing ethnic diversity undermines social capital
    4. growing ethnic and religious diversity increases conflict in society
13. The following example best describes the secondary transfer effects: ________.
    1. Observing someone from your ethnic group interacting with immigrants from other ethnic groups
    2. Your interactions with members of other ethnic groups
    3. Interacting only with members of your own ethnic groups
    4. Growing ethnic diversity of Canadian society
14. If we believe that being well-adjusted leads to both better health and more positive relationship, and good health and positive relationship reinforce each other, we contend that that the relationship between social relationship and health is ________.
    1. mediated
    2. emotional
    3. confounded
    4. independent
15. The following statement is FALSE: ________.
    1. Social networks influence people’s health-relevant behaviour through the transition of norms
    2. Social isolation harms mental health
    3. Social isolation may harm physical health through instrumental means such as lack of assistance with daily living
    4. There is undisputable evidence that social support directly enhances health
16. ________ is NOT a good measure of social cohesion.
    1. Participation in community affairs
    2. The number of individuals in one’s personal networks
    3. The number of community-based organizations
    4. The level of interpersonal trust
17. The following can be used as an example of social capital: ________.
    1. Levels of interpersonal trust in the community
    2. Ability to speak more than one language
    3. Knowledge of customs and traditions of members of your community
    4. Monetary assets
18. Network capital is ________.
    1. informational and instrumental support embedded in individual’s social network
    2. the financial assets of big corporations
    3. the ability to speak more than one language
    4. international collaboration
19. The following statement regarding social exclusion is FALSE: ________.
    1. Social exclusion refers to lack of social networks
    2. Social exclusion is a process arising from social structures
    3. Migrants and immigrants are often suffering from social exclusion
    4. Populations of Indigenous peoples in Canada are often socially excluded
20. The following statement best summarizes healthy immigrant effect: ________.
    1. Many immigrants to Canada arrive in poor health but once in Canada, their health substantially improves
    2. Many immigrants to Canada have better health on arrival than their Canadian-born counterparts and the health of these immigrants remains remarkably good as long as they stay in Canada
    3. Many immigrants to Canada have better health on arrival than their Canadian-born counterparts but, with time, their health becomes worse
    4. Immigrants to Canada rarely use the health care system because they are, for the most part, extremely healthy

True or False Questions

1. Researchers looking into the unusually low incidence of coronary heart disease among the male residents of Roseto, Pennsylvania, discovered the key variables were diet and a high rate of exercise among the Roseto men.
2. The richer (larger and denser) your personal network, the poorer your physical and mental health.
3. Associating with an obese person—or even associating with a non-obese person who associates with an obese one—affects the probability of someone becoming obese.
4. A confounded relationship suggests that being well adjusted independently gives rise to better physical and mental health as well as making it easier to develop positive relationships.
5. The loss of a friend or a spouse is more significant in emotional and health terms for men than for women.
6. Social exclusion is concerned with power and social structures and should be conceptualized as a process and not as a stable artifact of the community.
7. Focus on social solidarity as a strategy to improve health and community wellbeing is more closely associated with liberal and social democratic politicians than with conservative politicians and neo-liberal policies.
8. Social solidarity researchers point out that less equal societies are healthier than more equal societies as long as these societies have high social cohesion.
9. The term “social capital” has been criticized for being too focused on Europe and less applicable to American research.
10. The individual-level psychological explanations of the impact of social support on health focus on norms of trust and reciprocity or functional community organization.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the Roseto effect?

1. What are the differences between social networks and social support? Provide examples to illustrate your answer.
2. What is social capital?
3. How might social relationships improve health? Provide an example to illustrate your answer.
4. Chicago, Detroit, and Washington, DC have very different health profiles than San Jose, Seattle, and Vancouver. Why, in terms of the theory outlined in chapter 7, might that be so?

Essay Questions

1. After the collapse of communism in Russia, the life expectancy substantially declined and the incidents of heart attacks soared. How can you explain this phenomenon utilizing the notion of social capital and Durkheim’s conceptualization of social norms?
2. Summarize five theoretical strands that can explain the relationship between social support and health.
3. Discuss the relationship between social support, social networks, and health. How would you challenge those individuals who claim that availability of social support and/or social networks leads to better health?