Even though we observed an increase in family support,
it did not reach a statistically significant level. A study by
Kara and Mirici (2004) showed a correlation of loneliness
and depression levels in COPD patients and their spouses and both patients and spouses who had a lower level of support from friends and family had higher levels of depression. Another study (Kas¸ıkc¸ ı & Alberto 2006) found a substantial positive correlation between perceived social support and self-efficacy. Narsavage and Chen (2008) also reported that a family’s coping emotionally strongly predicted levels of depressed moods in patients with COPD at discharge. As for Turkey, a study by Aras and Tel (2009) determined that the number of persons in the COPD patients’ social networks decreased and that family predominantly provided social support. The results in the present study may derive from the fact that the majority of COPD patients lived with their spouses and families in accordance with Turkish social culture and they already had the benefit of a maximal amount of family support.