Deck 8: Social Support, Social Capital, Social Exclusion, and Racism

Question 1

Social support concerns ________.

A) the amount of social interactions
B) the number of people in your closest circle
C) the amount of people with whom you interact at least twice a week
D) the quality of social interactions within one's social networks

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Durkheim saw social integration as a function of ________.

A) social facts and social inequality
B) attachment and regulation
C) capacity building
D) social gradient in health

Answer 2

B

Question 3

The "Roseto effect" refers to ________.

A) health protective effects stemming from social support and social cohesion
B) the effect of immunization on population health
C) the impact of healthy diet enforced at the community level
D) the impact of social inequality on population health

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Supportive, predictable, social norms can be ________.

A) a source of isolation for many people
B) a source of stress for many people
C) protective of health and wellbeing
D) disruptive to health and wellbeing

Question 5

________ discipline members into adhering to norms, beliefs, and values, many of which are potentially health enhancing.

A) Social networks
B) Laws
C) Institutions
D) Governments

Question 6

Social support includes ________.

A) emotional support and the frequency of contact with others
B) frequency of contact with others and the total number of contacts
C) informational and instrumental support
D) informational support and the size of the social network

Question 7

The following statement regarding social networks is FALSE: ________.

A) The larger and denser your personal network, the better your physical and mental health
B) All types of social networks are beneficial for one's health
C) Social networks may improve access to resources
D) Networks discipline members into adhering to norms, beliefs, and values

Question 8

________ is NOT one of the examples of availability of social support.

A) Listening to a friend who is in trouble
B) Providing information about the best way to find a job
C) Having a large number of friends on Facebook
D) Lending a car to a friend

Question 9

Social networks can be characterized by all of the following EXCEPT ________.

A) the number of contacts
B) frequency of contacts
C) density of the network
D) emotional support

Question 10

According to the social network theory, Ella is least likely to smoke if ________.

A) she is associating with smokers
B) she is associating with non-smokers
C) she lives in a community where many people smoke
D) one or both of her parents smoked when she was a child

Question 11

According to the social network theory, the best approach to improving immunization rates among a population is to ________.

A) advertise the benefits of immunization in physicians' offices and community hospitals
B) advertise the benefits of immunization on national television during evening news to increase exposure
C) create a "viral campaign" and spread the message through people's social media networks
D) reduce poverty in the community and to improve access to vaccines

Question 12

Contact theory states that ________.

A) as individuals and groups gain experience with those different from themselves, norms of tolerance and cooperation develop
B) under the threat from diverse groups, intra-group solidarity breaks down
C) growing ethnic diversity undermines social capital
D) growing ethnic and religious diversity increases conflict in society

Question 13

The following example best describes the secondary transfer effects: ________.

A) Observing someone from your ethnic group interacting with immigrants from other ethnic groups
B) Your interactions with members of other ethnic groups
C) Interacting only with members of your own ethnic groups
D) Growing ethnic diversity of Canadian society

Question 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 ________.

A) mediated
B) emotional
C) confounded
D) independent

Question 15

The following statement is FALSE: ________.

A) Social networks influence people's health-relevant behaviour through the transition of norms
B) Social isolation harms mental health
C) Social isolation may harm physical health through instrumental means such as lack of assistance with daily living
D) There is undisputable evidence that social support directly enhances health

Question 16

________ is NOT a good measure of social cohesion.

A) Participation in community affairs
B) The number of individuals in one's personal networks
C) The number of community-based organizations
D) The level of interpersonal trust

Question 17

The following can be used as an example of social capital: ________.

A) Levels of interpersonal trust in the community
B) Ability to speak more than one language
C) Knowledge of customs and traditions of members of your community
D) Monetary assets

Question 18

Network capital is ________.

A) informational and instrumental support embedded in individual's social network
B) the financial assets of big corporations
C) the ability to speak more than one language
D) international collaboration

Question 19

The following statement regarding social exclusion is FALSE: ________.

A) Social exclusion refers to lack of social networks
B) Social exclusion is a process arising from social structures
C) Migrants and immigrants are often suffering from social exclusion
D) Populations of Indigenous peoples in Canada are often socially excluded

Question 20

The following statement best summarizes healthy immigrant effect: ________.

A) Many immigrants to Canada arrive in poor health but once in Canada, their health substantially improves
B) 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
C) Many immigrants to Canada have better health on arrival than their Canadian-born counterparts but, with time, their health becomes worse
D) Immigrants to Canada rarely use the health care system because they are, for the most part, extremely healthy

Question 21

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.

Question 22

The richer (larger and denser) your personal network, the poorer your physical and mental health.

Question 23

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.

Question 24

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.

Question 25

The loss of a friend or a spouse is more significant in emotional and health terms for men than for women.

Question 26

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.

Question 27

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.

Question 28

Social solidarity researchers point out that less equal societies are healthier than more equal societies as long as these societies have high social cohesion.

Question 29

The term "social capital" has been criticized for being too focused on Europe and less applicable to American research.

Question 30

The individual-level psychological explanations of the impact of social support on health focus on norms of trust and reciprocity or functional community organization.

Question 31

What is the Roseto effect?

Question 32

What are the differences between social networks and social support? Provide examples to illustrate your answer.

Question 33

How might social relationships improve health? Provide an example to illustrate your answer.

Question 34

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?

Question 35

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?

Question 36

Summarize five theoretical strands that can explain the relationship between social support and health.

Question 37

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?