Bm. Hagerty et al., SENSE OF BELONGING AND INDICATORS OF SOCIAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL FUNCTIONING, Archives of psychiatric nursing, 10(4), 1996, pp. 235-244
Sense of belonging has recently been described and defined as one spec
ific interpersonal process that influences health. The purpose of this
study was to examine the relationships between sense of belonging and
personal characteristics and selected indicators of social and psycho
logical functioning in men and women. Using a sample of 379 community
college students, sense of belonging was examined in relation to socia
l support, conflict, involvement in community activities, attendance a
t religious services, loneliness, depression, anxiety, history of psyc
hiatric treatment, and suicidality. Results indicated that sense of be
longing is closely related to indicators of both social and psychologi
cal functioning. These relationships were generally stronger for women
than for men. It appears that sense of belonging is a useful concept
pertinent to exploration of social and psychological functioning. Copy
right (C) 1996 by W.B. Saunders Company