Pathways Linking Family Relationships to Well-Being

A life course perspective draws attention to the importance of linked lives, or interdependence within relationships, across the life course (Elder, Johnson, & Crosnoe, 2003). Family members are linked in important ways through each stage of life, and these relationships are an important source of social connection and social influence for individuals throughout their lives (Umberson, Crosnoe, & Reczek, 2010). Substantial evidence consistently shows that social relationships can profoundly influence well-being across the life course (Umberson & Montez, 2010). Family connections can provide a greater sense of meaning and purpose as well as social and tangible resources that benefit well-being (Hartwell & Benson, 2007; Kawachi & Berkman, 2001).

The quality of family relationships, including social support (e.g., providing love, advice, and care) and strain (e.g., arguments, being critical, making too many demands), can influence well-being through psychosocial, behavioral, and physiological pathways. Stressors and social support are core components of stress process theory (Pearlin, 1999), which argues that stress can undermine mental health while social support may serve as a protective resource. Prior studies clearly show that stress undermines health and well-being (Thoits, 2010), and strains in relationships with family members are an especially salient type of stress. Social support may provide a resource for coping that dulls the detrimental impact of stressors on well-being (Thoits, 2010), and support may also promote well-being through increased self-esteem, which involves more positive views of oneself (Fukukawa et al., 2000). Those receiving support from their family members may feel a greater sense of self-worth, and this enhanced self-esteem may be a psychological resource, encouraging optimism, positive affect, and better mental health (Symister & Friend, 2003). Family members may also regulate each other’s behaviors (i.e., social control) and provide information and encouragement to behave in healthier ways and to more effectively utilize health care services (Cohen, 2004; Reczek, Thomeer, Lodge, Umberson, & Underhill, 2014), but stress in relationships may also lead to health-compromising behaviors as coping mechanisms to deal with stress (Ng & Jeffery, 2003). The stress of relationship strain can result in physiological processes that impair immune function, affect the cardiovascular system, and increase risk for depression (Graham, Christian, & Kiecolt-Glaser, 2006; Kiecolt-Glaser & Newton, 2001), whereas positive relationships are associated with lower allostatic load (i.e., “wear and tear” on the body accumulating from stress) (Seeman, Singer, Ryff, Love, & Levy-Storms, 2002). Clearly, the quality of family relationships can have considerable consequences for well-being.