Since the findings from epidemiological studies in N. America in the 1970s demonstrated the buffering effect of social support on health, researchers and practitioners from various disciplines were greatly interested in theoretical development and application of this concept. The enthusiasm in understanding this concept is expanding beyond N. America. This interest generated voluminous research in this area. However, due to the complexity of this concept, the literature has become fragmented. Researchers argued whether the macro perspective or the micro perspective best explain the effects of social support on health outcomes. Briefly summarizing the development of this concept and describing various dimensions of social support, this paper questions whether the various dimensions of this concept should be viewed as mutually exclusive or as a conceptual whole.