A study of more than 200,000 adults across 22 countries has found that people who report fulfilling friendships also tend to report better mental and physical health. The research, published in the Journal of Mental Health, draws on one of the largest and most geographically diverse datasets ever used to examine the relationship between social ties and health.
According to Phys.org, the findings come from Dr. Veli Durmuş of Kütahya Health Sciences University in Türkiye, who analyzed data from the Global Flourishing Study, a large-scale international survey designed to identify what helps people thrive throughout their lives. The study covered countries in Europe, the Americas, Asia, Oceania, the Middle East and Africa, including the UK, United States, Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Germany, Spain, India, Japan, Egypt, Nigeria, South Africa and Mexico.
Participants were asked how satisfied they were with their friendships and relationships. They also rated their mental and physical health on a scale from poor to excellent. Childhood relationships with mothers and fathers were scored separately, and researchers accounted for income, education and other variables.
The results showed that high-quality adult social connections were strongly associated with better health outcomes. Positive childhood family ties also showed a link to health, though that relationship was less pronounced than the one found for adult friendships.
"I found that people who were more satisfied with their friendships and relationships also tended to report better mental and physical health," Durmuş said. "These findings show why social connections should be considered an important part of overall health and well-being. With this in mind, public health planning and prevention strategies should include the impact on mental and physical well-being of how people connect with others and with their families."
Existing research has shown that personal relationships affect well-being from birth, and that social bonds can protect against stress, build self-esteem and help people manage their emotions. However, previous studies had focused on individual countries and produced inconsistent results. Durmuş designed this study specifically to address that gap by using the first phase of the Global Flourishing Study, which was selected to ensure religious and cultural diversity across participants.
Dr. Durmuş is calling on policymakers to ensure that health strategies formally recognize the role that social and family connections play in both mental and physical health.
