Systematic Review of Social Health Promotion with Social Capital Approach

Social health is one of the dimensions of health defined by the world health organization. Social capital components have close relations with social health. This study reviewed reported documents about social health and social capital components improving interventions. 

A systematic review was conducted to identify social health and social capital improving interventions using electronic databases (ScienceDirect, PubMed, ISI web of sciences, Scopus, UNDP, Legatum, WHO, World Bank, and ILO) published 2000 to 2019. 

A total of forty-one studies were included in our review. More than seventy-five percent of studies participants were both females and males but in more than ninety percent of the interventions, women were considered as the main group. Students were the target group of fifty-six percent of studies and the interventions conducted in the school setting. In more than ninety point two percent of studies clinical/community trial was the main research methods. The studies reported several objectives; poverty reduction, violence prevention, health promotion, social integration, social support, social well-being and quality of life, etc. Group discussion and lecturing were two common methods of communicating with target groups in most of these studies. More than sixty-five percent of the interventions were conducted by experts. Most interventions were performed in less than three months. Short-term interventions were able to have a positive effect on the promotion of social health components. Projects with more than fifty thousand people as the targeted group were implemented at least for twelve months. 

This review provides updated information on social health and social capital improvement interventions, which is vital information for developing guidelines for social health improvement. These interventions can be conducted in organized groups like schools or community-based organizations of society. The group participation of children, adolescents, young people, and minority or isolated groups in social health promotion programs needs to be considered and prioritized. Social health promotion can be considered as one of the goals in economic development programs.