Social support: Proposing a conceptual model for application to midwifery practice

Summary 

The notion of social support is one which midwives often intuit rather than clearly articulate or conceptualise. Increasingly social support is being touted as an area of midwifery assessment and potential intervention which may improve birthing outcomes for mothers and their infants. This paper is the first of three to address social support within the discipline of midwifery. It aims to review the fundamental theoretical constructs relating to social support and proposes a conceptual model to assist midwives in applying social support theory to their practice. Further papers will address social support-related research assumptions and the validation of measurement instruments in midwifery research.

Keywords: Social support, Social networks, Psycho-neuroimmunology, Perceived support, Buffer hypothesis, Social exchange theory, Self-esteem theory