What is social health?

Social health means ensuring equal opportunities and benefits for everyone in society by maintaining good relationships among all members of society. According to Russell, “A society is healthy only when there are equal opportunities for everyone, and everyone has access to the goods and services necessary to function fully as a citizen.”[1]

Mutual social support is also considered an important aspect of social health. Support reduces people's stress and lowers the incidence of disease. Social support also contributes to positive adjustment and personal growth among both children and adults. The concept of support, as a quality of society, highlights the core idea of social health: a sense of community—or the currently popular concept of social capital, which indicates the degree of mutual trust and reciprocity felt within a community—which is an important indicator of social health.

References:

[1] Russell, R. D. (1973). “Social Health: An Attempt to Clarify This Dimension of Well-Being.” International Journal of Health Education 16:74–82.