Research Matters

“Actively supporting the development and maintenance of good relationships pays dividends in terms of better health, wellbeing, increased productivity and decreases in couple and family breakdown.”

Relationships are a key social determinant of our health and wellbeing, acting as both a risk and a buffer/protective factor in our lives.

‘Relationships Matter’, commissioned research into the importance of relationships in Ireland, supports this evidence. In 2016, Ag Eisteacht commissioned Dr Sinéad Hanafin, a scholar of the European Academy of Nursing Science, a Visiting Research Fellow at Trinity and managing director of the research consultancy company, Research Matters, to research the importance of relationships and the effect they have on our health and wellbeing.

Dr Hanafin’s report ‘Relationships Matter’ uses national data and research sources to present an overview of relationships in Ireland throughout the life cycle, from infancy through to relationships in later life. It includes a review of relationships in the workplace and community, as well as addressing the topic of adverse relationship experiences.