A number of community health surveys have found that social support is associated with reduced rates of mortality and morbidity. Individuals with more ties to relatives, friends, neighbors, and voluntary organizations live longer and healthier lives than those with fewer ties. Why social support protects people against illness and premature death has not, however, been satisfactorily explained. The theoretical perspective guiding this research is that the influence of social support in reducing mortality should systematically vary by cause of death. The research will refine and validate a new classification of cause of death, which will then be used to test a series of hypotheses specify that the strength of association between social support and mortality will depend on gender, socioeconomic status, availability of formal medical resources, as well as on the structural features of the social support itself. Longitudinal surveys and mortality data from U.S. and Swedish samples of elderly persons will be used to test the hypotheses. The findings will contribute to our understanding of how people's social environments are linked to their physical health.
