ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the role that social relationships play in psychological well-being, clearly one aspect of a good life is the existence of that life and physical health and disease occurrence. It considers sufficient longitudinal evidence and analogue experimental studies to conclude that high-quality social relationships contribute substantially to an individual's overall well-being. The chapter explores the questions of how and through what pathways social ties contribute to well-being. J. A. Simpson and colleagues' present evidence that parenting quality predicts physical health, suggesting that relationship quality even in life may have a long-term impact on health. When people have abundant and satisfying social ties, they report higher well-being. Any close relationship can have both rewarding and costly components and can exert positive and negative forces on health. In short, perceptions of the availability of social support are closely tied to both relationship functioning and well-being.
