Psychobiology of social support: The social dimension of stress buffering

“…social support would be available in case of need has considerable consequences for an individual's health and even survival (Berkman et al., 2000; Holt-Lunstad et al., 2010; Seeman, 2000), with effect sizes equaling or exceeding those of well-established behavioral factors, such as…”

“Stress is considered a principal cause for a series of health problems, irrespective of the physical system affected (Adler & Matthews, 1994; McEwen, 1998).”

“Indeed, many recent reviews summarize the processes, conditions, and biological mechanisms by which this effect operates (Ditzen & Heinrichs 2014, Hostinar 2015, Hostinar & Gunnar 2015).”

“Neuropeptides involved in social bonding (e.g., endogenous opioids, oxytocin) may mediate these effects (Ditzen & Heinrichs, 2014; Eisenberger & Cole, 2012).”

“…positive regard and the resulting perceptions of social inclusion, felt security, and social support availability can collectively reduce or prevent stress (e.g., Brown, Sheffield, Leary, & Robinson, 2004; Ditzen & Heinrichs, 2014; Lepore, Allen, & Evan, 1993; Thorsteinsson & James, 1999).”

“affective states via the presence of another individual is a process found in a wide range of species including mammals, birds, fish and even invertebrates (Ditzen and Heinrichs, 2014; Oliveira and Faustino, 2017; Kiyokawa and Hennessy, 2018).”

“In laboratory stress research, social support has been shown to have buffering effects on both hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis and cardiovascular reactivity (Ditzen and Heinrichs 2014).”

“Consequently, OT is thought to buffer against physical and emotional stressors (Uvnas-Moberg 1998; Neumann 2002; Smith and Wang 2014; Ditzen and Heinrichs 2014).”

“For example, those with high levels of perceived social support feel increased levels of security because they are less likely to appraise a stressful situation as threatening, thus blunting the likelihood of physiological dysregulation (Ditzen & Heinrichs, 2014).”

“…1970s and 1980s in both the United States and Scandinavia that identify reductions in medical risk factors and risk of mortality (e.g. high blood pressure and high cholesterol) of as much as 50% among those individuals with high levels of social support (for review, see Ditzen and Heinrichs, 2014).”

“Clinical implications can be drawn for touch as a treatment for an acute physical or mental health problem under consideration of the disorder-specific reactions to touch and also for preventive applications during phases of high stress in order to reduce the chance of stress-induced diseases (148).”

“The roles of social touch in primate lives and groups All mammals need social proximity and attachment, and the CT afferent system provides the neurobiological support for these essential functions (Ditzen and Heinrichs, 2014; Hostinar et al., 2014; von Mohr et al., 2017).”

“Ditzen and Heinrichs (2013) define received support as “an intended and observable act of help (including all functional types)” whereas perceived support is “understood as a general expectation of being supported.””

“Support from both romantic partners as well as close friends have been reported to attenuate physiological stress [17, 26], while social support from friends, strangers, and significant others have each been shown to reduce pain perception in the laboratory [20, 27], regardless of whether the support is active (i.”

“…al., 2014; Hostinar et al., 2015; Sanchez et al., 2015; Sandi and Haller, 2015) which is consistent with the animal literature (Barr et al., 2009; Ditzen and Heinrichs, 2014; Hennessy et al., 2015; Kiyokawa et al., 2004; Sanchez et al., 2015; Shionoya et al., 2007; Sullivan and Perry, 2015;…”

“The Social Buffering of the HPA Axis Support from close relationships can be an important source of comfort during distress and can dampen the reactivity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) stress system (Ditzen & Heinrichs, 2014; Hostinar, Sullivan, & Gunnar, 2014).”

“…intranasal administration of OT potentiates the calming effects of social support; these effects are most likely based on a reduction of the stress-induced cortisol levels (Ditzen and Heinrichs, 2014; Heinrichs et al., 2003; Heinrichs et al., 2009; Olff et al., 2013; Quirin et al., 2011).”

“In contrast, experiencing prosocial behavior in the form of social support is a potent stress buffer (Ditzen & Heinrichs, 2014).”

“Notably, physical contact and affective tactile exchanges may increase the feeling of closeness and social connection (Morrison, 2016), thus promoting the subjective experience of security and comfort that in tune may result in a decrease of stress reactivity (Ditzen and Heinrichs, 2014).”

“…support, including the sympathetic nervous system, limbic and cortical regions (e.g., amygdala, hippocampus, prefrontal cortex), and the HPA axis (Ditzen & Heinrichs, 2014; Hostinar, Sullivan, & Gunnar, 2014), the OT system has been identified as a leading candidate for the regulation of social…”

“…consistent with a literature showing that social support may help buffer the deleterious effects of stressors through psychobiological mechanisms (Ditzen & Heinrichs, 2014), align with calls for health care providers to regularly monitor social factors in populations at increased risk for…”

“This is congruent with the notion that having access to caring, supportive social connections has a range of benefits for mental wellbeing [19, 20].”

“This aspect of social support has been described in myriad species, including humans and rodents, and occurs throughout the lifespan (Ditzen & Heinrichs, 2014; Gee et al., 2014; Hennessy, Kaiser, & Sachser, 2009; Hennessy et al., 2015; Hostinar & Gunnar, 2013; Kikusui, Winslow, & Mori, 2006;…”

“Brosnan et al. (2015) suggested that treatment with OXT elicited an anxiolytic response, thus diminished the motivation, and potentially the need, for social contact (which can be anxiolytic itself; Ditzen and Heinrichs, 2014).”

“In addition, evidence suggests that stress responses may be enhanced in a group-design, despite the possible buffering effects of social support (Ditzen and Heinrichs, 2014).”

“…species, including in human, nonhuman primates, and rodents, and there are profound positive effects of social buffering on health and well-being (Ditzen & Heinrichs, 2014; Gee et al., 2014; Hennessy, Kaiser, & Sachser, 2009; Hostinar, Sullivan, & Gunnar, 2014; Uchino, Cacioppo, &…”

“In humans, social buffering consistently attenuates behavioral fear responses and anxiety levels in both experimental and self-reported contexts [25].”

“These findings were unexpected and contrary to our initial predictions, as they seem to contradict reports that social affiliation is stress buffering (Ditzen and Heinrichs, 2014; Sanchez et al., 2015; Young et al., 2014), and that anxiousness is associated with increased cortisol output (Shackman et al.”

“High-quality partnerships and support systems are critical social resources, and serve as protective mechanisms against the deleterious outcomes associated with social stress (Carter, 1998; Cohen & Willis, 1985; Ditzen & Heinrichs, 2014; Wittig et al., 2016).”

“The perception of a positive regard from the romance partner offers a sense of security and social inclusion and contributes to the reduction and prevention of stress (Ditzen and Heinrichs, 2014).”

“Some scholars have shown that social support is an important mental health resource so far, which plays a buffering effect on the relationship between childhood abuse and adverse outcomes [16,17].”

“Although offers of social support can contribute to relationship satisfaction (Cutrona, Shaffer, Wesner, & Gardner, 2007), promote individual health (Ditzen & Heinrichs, 2014), and bolster esteem (Holmstrom & Kim, 2015), it is instructive to note that they can create a quandary for receivers, who…”

“Social support has positive effects on health and longevity and acts as a buffer under high levels of stress [1].”

“protective resources such as social support (Ditzen and Heinrichs, 2014).”

“, the stress-reducing effect elicited by the presence of a conspecific (Ditzen and Heinrichs, 2014; Hostinar et al., 2014; Gobrogge and Wang, 2015)), since it does not appear that a PDE11A mutant mouse is simply more motivated to explore a novel object vs.”

“Although support has been shown to have many benefits for recipients (for a review, see Ditzen & Heinrichs, 2014), researchers have contended that some support is actually harmful (Albrecht, Burleson, & Goldsmith, 1994), and failed support attempts from significant others can have a negative effect…”

“Research has found that social support can reduce overall individual stress by main effects and buffering effects to promote health in the long term.(31) The main effect of social support refers to the direct positive effect of social support on various health parameters without considering stress factors, and the buf…”

“Dysfunctional social interactions can trigger stress [24], hence, improving social skills by teaching adolescents to better communicate with others, might reduce perceived social stress.”

“15 Conversely, older adults with social isolation often encounter a deficiency in both material and emotional support and show higher rates of depression and depressive symptoms.”

“We focus on the role of the oxytocin system, which has been theorized to underlie the social buffering of stress (Ditzen & Heinrichs, 2014; Hostinar, Sullivan, & Gunnar, 2014).”

“These individuals may help with child care or they may provide the mother social support which can buffer feelings of stress and depression (Campos et al., 2014; Ditzen and Heinrichs, 2014).”

“In addition, OT is released in response to emotional, physical, and pharmacological stresses (Butterweck et al., 2003; Ebner et al., 2005; Quirin et al., 2011; Onaka et al., 2012; Ditzen and Heinrichs, 2014; Engert et al., 2016; Torner et al., 2017).”

“Throughout the literature, there is evidence that caregiver support can mitigate patients’ health-related stress [10], improve self-management of chronic illness, and positively affect long-term outcomes in conditions such as COPD [11,12].”

“Here stress reduction techniques or social support might be useful strategies to buffer the stress response (Ditzen and Heinrichs, 2014).”

“For both males and females, recovery from the stressor is accelerated by social support from their romantic partner if the partner provides high versus low positive support [183].”

“Moreover, the stress-buffering hypothesis of social support posits that access to social support can eliminate or weaken the negative effects of a perceived stressor on health and quality of life.(6,13) Social support refers to the perception and actuality that one is cared for, has assistance available from other peo…”

“Ditzen and Heinrichs [31] noted that workplace romances provide a sense of stability and social inclusion while also reducing stress in the workplace.”

“Social Support as a Positive Social Resource for Depression In parallel, the ability of social support (SS) to serve as a crucial social factor with beneficial effects on human health has long been recognized(27) and well documented for several decades now.(27,28) People persist, cope, and thrive not as isolated indiv…”

“Since the availability of a community has beneficial effects on user engagement [80] and social support can positively influence the stress response [81], this seems to be a desirable trend.”

“Social support may improve health outcomes indirectly through the provision of functional support (eg, transportation to a health appointment) or directly by exerting a stress-buffering effect [15,16].”

“Social interactions with significant others have a profound impact on our ability to cope with emotional and physical distress.(1,2) Being married or living in a committed relationship appears to be one of the most powerful sources of social support in humans.”

“Conversely, evidence suggests that this process may be partially mitigated by increasing social resources and support (Brooks et al., 2014; Zalli et al., 2014), possibly by generating safety signals that may attenuate the activity of the HPA system (Ditzen & Heinrichs, 2014).”

“Healthy and supportive intimate relationships promote well-being, buffer against the development of mental and physical illnesses, and improve recovery in burdened individuals (Holt-Lunstad et al., 2010; Ditzen and Heinrichs, 2014).”

“A robust body of literature exists explicating the role of social support in buffering stress (Ditzen & Heinrichs, 2014; Holt-Lunstad, 2018; Nitschke et al., 2021; Sandi & Haller, 2015).”

“In behavioral therapy, social support can play an important role in immediate as well as long-term reduction of stress and anxiety 1,2 and is effective in treating patients suffering from anxiety disorders, such as post-traumaticstressdisorder 3,4 .”

“Additionally, Ditzen and Heinrichs [9] explain that autonomic activation can be assessed through different physiological markers, such as pulse rate, blood pressure, or skin conductance, but that these measures do not necessarily correlate.”

“…a substantial body of empirical support to the buffering model of social support, and these findings suggested that social support can reduce stress reactivity and further decrease negative behavioral and psychobiological outcomes of stress (e.g., Ditzen & Heinrichs, 2014; Takizawa et al., 2006).”

“At the behavioral level, these increases in drug and social reward seeking may represent an attempt to buffer the negative hedonic effects of stress [27, 67].”