Family Relations, Friendships, and Love

doi:10.1017/9781108650182.047

Chapter 47 - Family Relations, Friendships, and Love

from Part V - Wellness through Optimization of Work, Love, and Play

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 18 September 2020

Talya Vogel and

Edited by

Waguih William IsHak: Affiliation:
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA)

Book contents

Get access

Summary

Humans are intrinsically social beings. Over time we are shaped by our lived experiences, particularly through our connections and interactions with others. By examining the profound nature of these social relationships, we can begin to understand how the mind emerges across the lifespan and regulates such experiences. In this chapter, we will explore relationships with family, friends, and romantic partners to develop an understanding of our innate social nature and the direct link this has to well-being and health.

Science has made evident the positive effects of relationships on well-being, including longevity, happiness, and mental health. The World Health Organization defines health as “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity” [1]. Therefore, the absence of disease alone does not signify well-being. Rather, well-being is a quality of life in which there is the presence of positive affective processes, a sense of satisfaction, purpose, and fulfillment in life, and the absence of enduring negative emotions [2, 3].

Information

Type: Chapter
Information: The Handbook of Wellness Medicine , pp. 553 - 564

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108650182.047 [Opens in a new window]

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Print publication year: 2020

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Book purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

World Health Organization. The constitution of the World Health Organization. 2019. www.who.int/about/who-we-are/constitution (accessed April 21, 2020).Google Scholar

Chanfreau, J, Lloyd, C, Byron, C, et al. Predicting Wellbeing. London, NatCen Social Research; 2013.Google Scholar

Children’s Society. The good childhood report, 2015. 2015. www.childrenssociety.org.uk/sites/default/files/TheGoodChildhoodReport2015.pdf (accessed April 21, 2020).Google Scholar

Helliwell, JF, Layard, R, Sachs, J, eds. World Happiness Report 2015. New York, Sustainable Development Solutions Network; 2015.Google Scholar

Diener, E, Suh, EM. National differences in subjective well-being. In: Kahneman, D, Diener, E, Schwarz, N, eds., Well-Being: The Foundations of Hedonic Psychology. New York, Russell Sage Foundation Publications; 2003; 434–450.Google Scholar

Inglehart, R, Haerpfer, C, Moreno, A, et al. World Values Survey: Round Six-Country-Pooled Datafile 2010–2014. Madrid, JD Systems Institute; 2014.Google Scholar

Helliwell, J, Layard, R, Sachs, J, eds., World Happiness Report 2019. New York, Sustainable Development Solutions Network; 2019.Google Scholar

Holt-Lunstad, J, Smith, TB, Layton, JB. Social relationships and mortality risk: a meta-analytic review. PLoS medicine 2010; 7(7): e1000316.CrossRef Google Scholar

Blackburn, E, Epel, E. The Telomere Effect: A Revolutionary Approach to Living Younger, Healthier, Longer. London, Hachette UK; 2017.Google Scholar

Meier, R. Relationships: the missing link in public health. Relationships Alliance, 2013. https://tavistockrelationships.ac.uk/images/uploads/Relationships_-_the_missing_link_in_public_health_-_report_from_the_Relationships_Alliance.pdf (accessed February 29, 2020).Google Scholar

Marmot, M, Allen, J, Goldblatt, P, et al. Fair society, healthy lives. The Marmot Review London 2010. www.instituteofhealthequity.org/resources-reports/fair-society-healthy-lives-the-marmot-review (accessed February 29, 2020).Google Scholar

Aknin, LB, Dunn, EW, Norton, MI. Happiness runs in a circular motion: evidence for a positive feedback loop between prosocial spending and happiness. J Happiness Stud 2011; 13(2): 347–355.Google Scholar

Hofmann, W, Wisneski, DC, Brandt, MJ, et al. Morality in everyday life. Science 2014; 345(6202): 1340–1343.Google Scholar

Aknin, LB, Barrington-Leigh, CP, Dunn, EW, et al. Prosocial spending and well-being: cross-cultural evidence for a psychological universal. J Pers Soc Psychol 2013; 104(4): 635.Google Scholar

Siegel, DJ. Pocket Guide to Interpersonal Neurobiology: An Integrative Handbook of the Mind. New York, WW Norton; 2012.Google Scholar

Siegel, DJ. The Developing Mind (3rd ed.) New York, Guilford Press; 2020.Google Scholar

Alasuutari, P. Theorizing in qualitative research: a cultural studies perspective. Qualitat Inquiry 1996; 2(4): 371–384.CrossRef Google Scholar

Siegel, DJ. Mind: A Journey to the Heart of Being Human. New York, WW Norton; 2016.Google Scholar

Rakel, D, Barrett, B, Zhang, Z, et al. Perception of empathy in the therapeutic encounter: effects on the common cold. Patient Educ Couns 2011; 85(3): 390–397.Google Scholar

Chierchia, G, Singer, T. The neuroscience of compassion and empathy and their link to prosocial motivation and behavior. In: Dreher, J-C, Tremblay, L, eds., Decision Neuroscience. New York, Academic Press; 2017; 247–257.Google Scholar

Klimecki, OM, Leiberg, S, Lamm, C, et al. Functional neural plasticity and associated changes in positive affect after compassion training. Cerebral Cortex 2012; 23(7): 1552–1561.Google Scholar

Lama, D, Tutu, D. The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World. New York, Avery, an Imprint of Penguin Random House; 2016.Google Scholar

Siegel, DJ. AWARE: The Science and Practice of Presence. New York, TarcherPerigee; 2018.Google Scholar

Siegel, DJ. Mindsight: The New Science of Personal Transformation. New York, Bantam; 2010.Google Scholar

Smith, SM, Nichols, TE, Vidaurre, D, et al. Positive–negative mode of population covariation links brain connectivity, demographics and behavior. Nature Neurosci 2015; 18(11): 1565.Google Scholar

Siegel, DJ. The Mindful Therapist: A Clinician’s Guide to Mindsight and Neural Integration. New York, WW Norton; 2010.Google Scholar

Panksepp, J, Biven, L. The Archaeology of Mind: Neuroevolutionary Origins of Human Emotions. New York, WW Norton; 2012.Google Scholar

Porges, SW. The Polyvagal Theory: Neurophysiological Foundations of Emotions, Attachment, Communication, and Self-Regulation. New York, WW Norton; 2011.Google Scholar

Geller, SM. A Practical Guide to Cultivating Therapeutic Presence. Washington, DC, American Psychological Association; 2017.Google Scholar

Goleman, D, Davidson, RJ. Altered Traits: Science Reveals How Meditation Changes Your Mind, Brain, and Body. New York, Penguin; 2017.Google Scholar

Villamil, A, Vogel, T, Weisbaum, E, et al. Cultivating well-being through the three pillars of mind training: understanding how training the mind improves physiological and psychological well-being. OBM Integr Complement Med 2019; 4(1).Google Scholar

Cozolino, L. The Neuroscience of Human Relationships: Attachment and the Developing Social Brain. New York, WW Norton; 2014.Google Scholar

Hasson, U, Ghazanfar, AA, Galantucci, B, et al. Brain-to-brain coupling: a mechanism for creating and sharing a social world. Trends Cogn Sci 2012; 16(2): 114–121.CrossRef Google Scholar PubMed

Schore, AN. Affect Regulation and the Origin of the Self: The Neurobiology of Emotional Development. New York, Routledge; 2015.Google Scholar

Main, M. The organized categories of infant, child, and adult attachment: flexible vs. inflexible attention under attachment-related stress. J Am Psychoanal Assoc 2000; 48(4): 1055–1096.Google Scholar

Sroufe, LA. The coherence of individual development: early care, attachment, and subsequent developmental issues. Am Psychol 1979; 34(10): 834.Google Scholar

Bowlby, J. A Secure Base: Parent–Child Attachment and Healthy Human Development. New York, Basic Books; 2008.Google Scholar

Mental Health Foundation. Relationships in the 21st Century. London, Mental Health Foundation; 2016.Google Scholar

Doidge, N. The Brain that Changes Itself: Stories of Personal Triumph from the Frontiers of Brain Science. New York, Penguin; 2007.Google Scholar

Gottman, JM. The Science of Trust: Emotional Attunement for Couples. New York, WW Norton; 2011.Google Scholar

Holt-Lunstad, J, Birmingham, W, Jones, BQ. Is there something unique about marriage? The relative impact of marital status, relationship quality, and network social support on ambulatory blood pressure and mental health. Ann Behav Med 2008; 35(2): 239–244.Google Scholar

Robles, TF, Slatcher, RB, Trombello, JM, et al. Marital quality and health: a meta-analytic review. Psychol Bull 2014; 140(1): 140.Google Scholar

Bloem, BA, Tilburg, TG, Thomese, F. Changes in older Dutch adults’ role networks after moving. Pers Relatsh 2008; 15(4): 465–478.Google Scholar

Fisher, H. Why We Love: The Nature and Chemistry of Romantic Love. Basingstoke, Macmillan; 2004.Google Scholar

Feldman, R. The neurobiology of human attachments. Trends Cogn Sci 2017; 21(2): 80–99.CrossRef Google Scholar PubMed

Atzil, S, Gao, W, Fradkin, I, et al. Growing a social brain. Nat Hum Behav 2018; 2: 624–636.CrossRef Google Scholar PubMed

Accessibility standard: Unknown

Accessibility compliance for the PDF of this book is currently unknown and may be updated in the future.