Social network bridging potential and the use of complementary and alternative medicine in later life

Abstract

The use of complementary/alternative medicine (CAM) is typically modeled as a function of individual health beliefs, including changes in perceptions of conventional medicine, an orientation toward more holistic care, and increasing patient involvement in health care decision-making. Expanding on research that shows that health-related behavior is shaped by social networks, this paper examines the possibility that CAM usage is partly a function of individuals’ social network structure. We argue that people are more likely to adopt CAM when they function as bridges between network members who are otherwise not (or poorly) connected to each other. This circumstance not only provides individuals with access to a wider range of information about treatment options, it also reduces the risk of sanctioning by network members if one deviates from conventional forms of treatment. We test this idea using data from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP), a nationally representative study of older Americans. Analyses of egocentric social network data show that older adults with bridging potential in their networks are significantly more likely to engage in a greater number of types of CAM. We close by discussing alternative explanations of these findings and their potential implications for research on CAM usage.

Assessing the Quality of Websites Relating to Complementary and Integrative Health: A Review of Five Domains (Preprint)

“…First, patients seek healthcare that is more in line with their values, beliefs and orientations; this may include a valuation of more holistic approaches to health, an orientation towards wellness, and a desire to participate in treatment decisions [10][11][12][13][14][15][16]. Relying on personal experiences [15,[17][18][19], use of social networks for information and decision making [16,[18][19][20][21] and social relationships may also influence individuals' decisions to seek CIH care [22][23][24][25]. Lastly, dissatisfaction with conventional practitioners and lack of effectiveness of conventional treatments may also influence this shift towards CIH [13,19,[26][27][28]16].…”

Viewpoints of Patients in Qazvin Towards Complementary and Alternative Medicine

“…In many great universities, the coordinated system of health services and treatment in the form of integrative medicine is currently being studied and taught (6). While modern medicine has focused on the matter of intervening in the treatment of special diseases and is missing the concept of self-healing, the integration of modern medicine and complementary medicine, known as "integrative medicine," seems to be the future of medicine (8,9).…”

“…CAM, especially in recent years, and in all scientific aspects, including methodological, economic, and legal ones, has experienced tremendous growth (9,10). Various censuses have reported patients' relative frequency of using these services as being between 40 and 69 percent by 1998, while this amount had been reported as just 34 percent in 1990 (11).…”

“…The most recently emerging category of CAMs is full systems for health recovery that include acupuncture, chiropractic, herbal medicine, homeopathy, osteopathy and special healing methods (9,12). Posadzki et al (16) has reported that acupuncture, homeopathy, and relaxation therapy were the most popular methods of CAM used by physicians between 1 January 1995 and 7 December 2011.…”

“…In a similar manner, phlebotomy is referred to as a traditional Arabic treatment, or as a form of traditional Persian medicine or Islamic medicine (9). It is derived from an older cupping method used in traditional medicine.…”