Based on the review of the literature, three common components of social connectedness can be identified as socialising, Social support, and Sense of belonging.
In its most narrow form, social connectedness refers to the social ties between people.
Importantly, consideration must be given as to whether this is simply a person’s number of friends and the frequency of contact with friends and family members, or whether the quality of person’s social relationships is equally, if not more, important to wellbeing.
Socialising
As social beings, we thrive on interactions with others to be and feel well and research shows that activities are typically more satisfying when shared with others. Socialising is the interaction between two or more people coming together (whether planned or unplanned) to have a good time and enjoy each other’s company. Examples of socialising include friends or family members spending time together, colleagues having lunch together, or neighbourhood residents having a street party.
Social support
Social support refers to the support from people in a person’s social network that is either provided or perceived to be readily available in times of need.
A key difference between socialising and social support is that socialising refers to two or more individuals who come together as more or less equal partners.
In contrast, social support refers to situations in which one person or group needs help to achieve an objective and another person or group offers resources to provide help.
Social support is typically divided into emotional, instrumental, and informational support.
Emotional support refers to the amount of “love and caring, sympathy and understanding and/or esteem or value available from others”. Emotional support is most often provided by someone close, although less intimate ties can provide such support as well.
Instrumental support focuses on help with practical things, such as financial assistance, lending items or help with child care responsibilities.
Informational support refers to people who serve as information and referral sources (eg, housing or job referrals) or who provide advice on expert matters such as medical, legal, financial or technical advice.
Another distinction is between perceived support and received support. For instance it is not necessarily the receipt of support that is critical, but that a person believes it will be available when needed.
Sense of belonging
A sense of belonging is the feeling of being connected to and valued by other people. Whether it is sourced from family, friends, co-workers, club members, or a church community, people have an inherent desire to belong and be part of something greater than themselves.
Having a sense of belonging is a protective factor that strengthens people’s resilience. In contrast, feelings of loneliness are a risk factor and are argued to indicate a deficit in one’s sense of belonging.
Loneliness is distinct from aloneness or the lack of social ties per se: a person who feels lonely might be surrounded by or connected to many people (none of whom satisfactorily fulfil his or her need to belong). At the same time, a person can be alone or have a limited number of social contacts without feeling lonely.