An exploration of the role of social networks in cardiovascular risk reduction

Objective: To identify and describe the role of social networks in influencing individual wellness motivation within the context of cardiac rehabilitation. Design: A naturalistic design was used in the collection and analysis of inductively generated data. Sample: Twenty-four individuals who were participating in an outpatient cardiac rehabilitation program. Of the 24 subjects sampled, 17 were men and seven were women. The respondents' ages ranged from 38 to 79 years, with a mean age of 58 years. At the time of the study, informants had been involved in cardiac rehabilitation for an average length of 10 weeks. Results: Two primary categories were identified that describe informant perception of the role of social networks in motivating health behavior change: enabling and limiting. Subcategories identified were consistent with the general types of support described in social support literature (emotional, feedback, problem solving, instrumental), as well as behaviors found to diminish motivation in cardiovascular health behavior (value conflict, boundary maintenance). Conclusions: Findings from this study provide a better understanding of the role of social networks in motivating health behavior change within the context of cardiac rehabilitation.