Cited by 1,226Health disparities and outcomesFamily Dynamics and RelationshipsAttachment and Relationship Dynamics

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Social Relationships and Health Behavior Across the Life Course

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Umberson, Debra, Crosnoe, Robert, Reczek, Corinne·2010·Annual Review of Sociology

DOI 10.1146/annurev-soc-070308-120011PMC PMC3171805

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Abstract

Sociological theory and research point to the importance of social relationships in affecting health behavior. This work tends to focus on specific stages of the life course, with a division between research on childhood/adolescent and adult populations. Yet recent advances demonstrate that early life course experiences shape health outcomes well into adulthood. We synthesize disparate bodies of research on social ties and health behavior throughout the life course, with attention to explaining how various social ties influence health behaviors at different life stages and how these processes accumulate and reverberate throughout the life course.

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Influential
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“Social connections can have powerful influences on health behavior [28] and social support.”
Background
Longitudinal evidence of the influence of early life circumstances, family characteristics, social ties and psychological distress on healthy behaviours of Brazilian adults: The Pro-Saude cohort study
Vettore, M. V., Stea, T. H., Zahl‐Olsen, R., & Faerstein, E. (2024) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0306565 · Cited by 2
Development and initial validation of social interaction questionnaire
Ida Merlin, J., & Prabakar, S. (2024) · Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment · doi:10.1080/10911359.2024.2394205 · Cited by 2
“These interactions are essential across the lifespan, contributing to mental health, cognitive functioning, and even physical health (Umberson et al., 2010).”
Social and Religious Networks with Respect to the Health Behaviors of African American Women: A Systematic Review
Derboghossian, G., Foust, J. B., & Hayman, L. L. (2024) · Journal of Religion and Health · doi:10.1007/s10943-024-02147-9 · Cited by 3
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Tilstra, A. M., & Kapelle, N. (2025) · Journal of Health and Social Behavior · doi:10.1177/00221465251320079 · Cited by 2
“As such, previous research has suggested that the transition into marriage is related to a reduction in risky health behaviors (Bachman 2002; Umberson et al. 2010).”
Story Completion Methods in Qualitative Research
Braun, V., Clarke, V., Frith, H., & Moller, N. P. (2025) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197681039.003.0003 · Cited by 2
Riesgo familiar total y funcionalidad familiar en hogares de una agrupación familiar de San Juan de Lurigancho, 2021.
Rojas, R. M. B., & Ramos, C. O. M. (2022) · Revista Cuidado y Salud Pública · doi:10.53684/csp.v2i1.38 · Cited by 2
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Liamputtong, P. (2016) · Cross-cultural research in health, illness and well-being · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-29936-5_1 · Cited by 2
Psychosocial relationship status and quality as predictors of exercise intervention adherence and substance use outcomes: Results from the STRIDE (CTN-0037) study
Trombello, J. M., Carmody, T. J., Greer, T. L., Walker, R., Rethorst, C. D., & Trivedi, M. H. (2017) · Psychiatry Research · doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2017.04.062 · Cited by 2
“Substantial literature has demonstrated the benefits of perceived social support on general physical health and the functioning of specific physiological systems, including cardiovascular and immunological systems (Uchino, 2006; Umberson et al., 2010).”
Background
Work Dissatisfaction and Sleep Problems among Canadians in the Latter Half of Life
Brown, K., & Bierman, A. (2017) · Canadian Journal on Aging / La Revue canadienne du vieillissement · doi:10.1017/s0714980817000198 · Cited by 2
“Social ties with family may be less efficacious as a stress buffer because, even while serving as a conduit for emotional care and comfort (Ailshire & Burgard, 2012), familial social ties can also create a sense of responsibility for, and obligation to, one’s family (Umberson et al., 2010).”
Background
Parents’ concerns regarding the growth characteristics of their adolescents: a qualitative inquiry in Iran
Cheraghi, M. A., Rezasoltani, P., Vedadhir, A., Taghizadeh, Z., & Samadanifard, S. H. (2018) · International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-Being · doi:10.1080/17482631.2018.1453179 · Cited by 2
Medical Comfort at the Intersection of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity
Tuthill, Z. O., & Gorman, B. K. (2019) · Social Currents · doi:10.1177/2329496519852580 · Cited by 2
(Familiale) Lebensformen – Bedeutung und Implikationen für die Prävention und Gesundheitsförderung
Becker, O. A., & Loter, K. (2021) · Springer Reference Pflege, Therapie, Gesundheit · doi:10.1007/978-3-662-62426-5_27 · Cited by 2
The Validity and Reliability of the Persian Version of the Family Health Climate Scale (FHC‐Scale) in Female Students and Their Mothers in Iran 2019
Ostovarfar, J., Kaveh, M. H., Ghahramani, L., Karimi, M., Asadollahi, A., & Zare, R. (2021) · BioMed Research International · doi:10.1155/2021/8845716 · Cited by 2
“Health behaviors are embedded in social contexts and are influenced by social relationships, which are among the most important social contexts of the family [2, 3].”
Background
Birds of a Feather Flock Together and Opposites Attract: The Nonlinear Relationship Between Personality and Friendship
Liu, H., & Zhang, Z. J. (2021) · Journal of Behavioral Data Science · doi:10.35566/jbds/v1n1/p3 · Cited by 2
Your Best Life: The Power of Connection
Kelly, J. D. (2022) · Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research · doi:10.1097/corr.0000000000002231 · Cited by 2
An Assessment of Racial and Ethnic and Sexual Identity Centrality and Smoking Behavior
Tuthill, Z. O. (2022) · Journal of Homosexuality · doi:10.1080/00918369.2022.2071137 · Cited by 2
Socioeconomic factors related to tooth brushing behavior among adults in Korea: analysis with 2019 Community Health Survey data
Lee, Y., & Kim, N. (2022) · 대한구강보건학회지 · doi:10.11149/jkaoh.2022.46.2.47 · Cited by 2
BMI Reporting and Accuracy of Child’s Weight Perception
Gee, K. A., Thompson, H. R., Sliwa, S. A., & Madsen, K. A. (2022) · PEDIATRICS · doi:10.1542/peds.2021-055730 · Cited by 2
Interactive associations between abstinence plans and romantic partner conflict and support with cigarette smoking
Bowdring, M. A., Loftus, P., Wang, S. D., Pang, R. D., & Kirkpatrick, M. G. (2022) · Drug and Alcohol Dependence · doi:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2022.109756 · Cited by 2
The effect of adult education on health-related behaviours
Kohl, J., & Martin, A. (2023) · Zeitschrift für Erziehungswissenschaft · doi:10.1007/s11618-023-01145-z · Cited by 5
“These social networks and social ties can then influence health-related behaviours directly as well as indirectly through social and personal K control and social support (Umberson et al. 2010a).”
BackgroundInfluential
Three Semesters in: COVID’s Impact on the Health and Well-being of Students over Three Semesters of the Health Emergency Order Concerning the Pandemic
Woosley, J. M., Baraya, A. R., Noguera, J., & Budden, M. C. (2023) · European Journal of Education and Pedagogy · doi:10.24018/ejedu.2023.4.5.563 · Cited by 2
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Yan, D., Ji, H., Fu, H., Jiang, J., Su, B., & Ye, B. (2024) · Environmental Geochemistry and Health · doi:10.1007/s10653-024-01982-9 · Cited by 2
“…of their parents (for example, parents who smoke or drink alcohol are more likely to have children who smoke or drink alcohol), and imitate the behaviors of their peer group, while socialization also has a strong influence on the level of health education received (Umberson et al., 2010).”
The Long Arm of Adolescence: School Health Behavioral Environments, Tobacco and Alcohol Co-Use, and the 5HTTLPR Gene
Daw, J., & Boardman, J. D. (2014) · Biodemography and Social Biology · doi:10.1080/19485565.2014.946590 · Cited by 2
“In general, early life conditions predict later health outcomes (Hayward and Gorman 2004; Umberson, Crosnoe, and Reczek 2010), as individuals draw on resources from earlier life stages to navigate their current circumstances (Crosnoe and Elder 2002).”
Background
Building Community Social Capital
Lieberman, E. S. (2018) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-93326-9_9 · Cited by 4
Single mothers' contact frequency with family and non-family members
Zagel, H. (2020) · Journal of Family Research · doi:10.20377/jfr-156 · Cited by 2
Erratum: Psychosocial correlates of apparent treatment-resistant hypertension in the Jackson Heart Study
Shallcross, A. J., Butler, M. J., Tanner, R. M., Bress, A. P., Muntner, P., Shimbo, D., Ogedegbe, G. G., Sims, M., & Spruill, T. M. (2017) · Journal of Human Hypertension · doi:10.1038/jhh.2017.19 · Cited by 2
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Mistretta, E. G. (2019) · Arizona State University Library Digital Repository (Arizona State University) · Cited by 2
Theory of Mind and Social Functioning in Health and Psychopathology: A Social Neuroscience Perspective
Dodell‐Feder, D. (2017) · Digital Access to Scholarship at Harvard (DASH) (Harvard University) · Cited by 2
Close kin influence COVID-19 precautionary behaviors and vaccine acceptance of older individualsPreprint
Arpino, B., Bordone, V., & Gessa, G. D. (2022) · Research Square · doi:10.31235/osf.io/b3rn2 · Cited by 2
Working the Pony
Fernández-Esquer, M. E., & Diamond, P. M. (2014) · Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences · doi:10.1177/0739986314551748 · Cited by 1
Maternal social isolation in the perinatal period and early childhood development: the Tohoku Medical Megabank Project Birth and Three-Generation Cohort Study
Murakami, K., Noda, A., Ishikuro, M., Obara, T., Ueno, F., Onuma, T., Kikuchi, S., Kobayashi, N., Hamada, H., Iwama, N., et al. (2023) · Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology · doi:10.1007/s00127-023-02498-w · Cited by 1
Social Network Negativity and Physical Activity: New Longitudinal Evidence for Young and Older Adults 2015-2018
Dubash, S., & Schafer, M. H. (2023) · Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport · doi:10.1080/02701367.2023.2205910 · Cited by 2
“…2021; Shiovitz-Ezra & Litwin, 2012; Sørensen & Gill, 2008), obtain varied information on PA’s health benefits (Saito et al., 2021), and receive reinforcement of social norms related to health behavior change by significant others (Ståhl et al., 2001; Umberson et al., 2010; Umberson, 1987, 1992).”
Background
Neighborhood socioeconomic position, living arrangements, and cardiometabolic disease among older Puerto Ricans: An examination using PREHCO 2002–2007
Quashie, N. T., García, C., Meltzer, G., Andrade, F. C. D., & Matos-Moreno, A. (2023) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0289170 · Cited by 1

Authors: Umberson, D., Crosnoe, R., & Reczek, C.
Affiliations: The University of Texas at Austin (US)
ORCID: Umberson, Debra
Crosnoe, Robert
Reczek, Corinne
Venue: Annual Review of Sociology
Publisher: Annual Reviews
Published: 2010-06-01
Volume: 36
Issue: 1
Pages: 139-157
ISSN: 0360-0572 (ISSN-L)
1545-2115
DOI: 10.1146/annurev-soc-070308-120011
PMC: PMC3171805
OpenAlex: W2141249644
Cited by: 1,226
References: 149
Citations by year: 2026: 66 · 2025: 101 · 2024: 105 · 2023: 99 · 2022: 103 · 2021: 120 · 2020: 101 · 2019: 85 · 2018: 91 · 2017: 79 · 2016: 72 · 2015: 67 · 2014: 49 · 2013: 50 · 2012: 28
FWCI: 4.83
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: green
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Locations: Annual Review of Sociology (publishedVersion)
PubMed (publishedVersion)
Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders: National Institute on Aging (R01AG026613)
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R03HD078754, R24HD042849, R01HD055359)
Topics: Social Sciences › Health › Health disparities and outcomes
Social Sciences › Demography › Family Dynamics and Relationships
Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Attachment and Relationship Dynamics
Keywords: interpersonal relationships, health behavior, life course, social ties, childhood and adolescence, adulthood, early life experience, health outcomes, social determinants of health

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