The Relationship Between Social Support and Health in Gay Men With HIV/AIDS: An Integrative Review

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The purpose of this article is to analyze the existing research on the relationship between social support and health in gay men with HIV/AIDS. After literature review, 24 studies that met inclusion criteria were analyzed. It was found that the research could be divided into three distinct groups: (a) those studies that focused on the social networks of gay men and the role of significant others in regard to social support, (b) those studies that focused on coping and its relationship to social support, and (c) those studies that attempted to relate social support to other concepts such as hardiness, hope, depression, and illness concerns. A discussion of findings and conclusions are presented along with recommendations for future nursing knowledge development and practice.

Section snippets

Methodology

Research articles for this analysis were chosen primarily through computer searches. Four computer databases were accessed and included: (a) the Cumulative Index for Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), (b) AIDS and Cancer Research, (c) Med-Line, and (d) Psychfirst. The databases were searched with the following key words in various combinations: (a) social support, (b) social network, (c) homosexuality, (d) gay men, and (e) HIV/AIDS. The four databases yielded research from nursing,

Analysis of Body of Research

Although the research is diverse, certain patterns did emerge during analysis. These patterns relate to sampling methods, sample characteristics of participants (demographic variables), and research design. Furthermore, the research studies can be divided into three distinct areas: (a) those studies that focused on the social networks of gay men and the role of significant others in regard to social support (Bechtel & Swartzberg, 1993; Britton, Zarski, & Hobfoll, 1993; Catania, Turner, Choi, &

Research

Nursing is a practice discipline. Yet, practice must be informed by research-based knowledge. Although research continues on social support and its effect on the health of gay men with HIV/AIDS, problems remain with the conceptualization of social support, the lack of diverse sample populations, the need for more complex research designs, and other issues. Therefore, several recommendations for nursing research follow.

Conceptualization of social support: seeking clarification. Disparate

Conclusion

The research literature on social support and health in gay men with HIV/AIDS remains tentative. A great deal of work on the conceptualization of social support and parallel research on its related health outcomes remains to be done. A major gap in this research literature is the lack of intervention testing for poor social support in gay men with HIV/AIDS. This is significant given the evolution of HIV/AIDS into a chronic illness in response to the introduction of new drug therapies such as

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    Copyright © 1999 Association of Nurses in AIDS Care. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.