Friend Support Research Articles

Comparing National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II Athletes’ Perceptions of Social Support Following Injury, Illness, and Other Identified Stressors

Collegiate athletes have demonstrated a need for social support to help cope with their daily responsibilities. The purpose of this research was to explore National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II athletes’ perception of social support from friends, teammates, family, coaches, significant others, and athletic trainers following injury, illness, or other identified life stressors. There were 546 participants who completed a five-part survey using the University Stress Scale, the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, the Athletic Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, the Perceived Stress Scale, and a demographic section. Of the participants, 352 (64.5%) stated that they experienced moderate stress levels, and all participants indicated experiencing an identified life stressor within the last 12 months. The results indicated statistically significant differences when comparing providers of social support: females preferred the support of friends, significant others, and athletic trainers, and freshmen and sophomores perceived more social support from friends than did juniors and seniors.

잠재성장모형을 활용한 청소년의 그릿 변화양상과 영향변인 탐색

The purpose of this study was to examine how grit changes over time in adolescence and to explore the time effects of influencing variables on grit. To do this, the 1st (2018) to 5th wave (2022) data of the 4th- and 7th-grade cohorts from the Korean Children and Youth Panel Survey 2018 were used for analysis. Latent growth models were explored to determine the most suitable model to figure out changing patterns of grit during this period, and contemporaneous and lagged effects of the influencing variables at each time point were tested as well. The main results were as follows. First, it was confirmed that the most suitable model among the various latent growth models was the piecewise growth model, which can reflect school transitions. Grit was observed to decline during the time of analysis. Second, it was found that adolescents’ academic enthusiasm and self-esteem had a significant positive contemporaneous effect on grit. It was also observed that at some time points, academic enthusiasm had a lagged effect that positively influenced grit in the following year, while self-esteem did not have a significant lagged effect. The perception of parental support had a significant positive contemporaneous effect on grit at some time points, with a significant lagged effect at some time points. The perception of teacher support had a significant positive contemporaneous effect on grit at some time points and a significant positive lagged effect on grit at some time points. The perception of friend support was found to have no significant contemporaneous effect, while there were significant negative lagged effects for grit at some points. Finally, the implications and recommendations of this study are discussed.

Gratitude for Teenagers with Disabilities (Physical Disability)

The purpose of this study is to describe gratitude in teenagers with disabilities (physical disability). This type of research is qualitative with a phenomenological approach. The subjects are adolescents who are physically disabled. The results obtained show that gratitude is a feeling and attitude of accepting everything that has been given by God, by trying to return everything to God. Factors that influence the gratitude of adolescents with disabilities are faith in God, the presence of parents, social support (friends, parents, and living environment), religious experience. Meanwhile, the benefits obtained from the feeling of gratitude are physical health, increased ability of self-esteem, not easily despairing, living life without burden and being more patient.

Associations between employment and mental health of older workers with disparate conditions: Evidence from China

PurposeThis study aimed to examine associations between the employment of older people and mental health across demographic characteristics, socioeconomic conditions, and health status, with a focus on pensions. MethodsThis study included 4,512 participants aged 60–69 from the CLASS in 2014. A multiple linear regression was conducted to investigate the association between employment and mental health. A causal forest model was applied to estimate the heterogeneous treatment effects. ResultsEmployed individuals (n = 1,295) reported better mental health than their non-employed counterparts. This association displayed significant heterogeneity, primarily attributed to pensions. Those with lower pensions may be compelled to work due to financial reasons, thus offsetting the health-promotion effect of employment. ConclusionEmployment may benefit the mental health of older adults, which has a more significant marginal effect on those who are men, older, urban residents, without a spouse, below primary education, receiving more pensions, and less family and friend support.

Social support and mental health: the mediating role of perceived stress.

Social support has been associated with improved mental health; however, the mechanisms underlying this relationship remain unclear. This study aimed to explore whether perceived stress mediate the relationship between social support and positive affect, anxiety, and depression. Drawing from Lazarus and Folkman's stress and coping theory, the study emphasized the influential role of social support in appraising stressful events. A cross-sectional survey was conducted online among 426 Filipino adults during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants completed measures including the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), the Perceived Stress Scale-10 (PSS-10), the Positive Affect subscale of PANAS, and the Depression and Anxiety subscales of DASS-21. The hypotheses of the study were tested using mediation analysis. Consistent with the hypotheses, perceived stress significantly mediated the relationship between family and significant other support with positive affect, anxiety, and depression. Family and significant other support decreased perceived stress, increasing positive affect, and decreasing anxiety and depression. On the other hand, perceived stress did not mediate the relationship between friend support and positive affect, anxiety, and depression. Implications and future research directions are discussed.

Predictors for the utilization of community support systems against intimate partner violence among married women living with HIV in southwestern Uganda-A cross sectional study.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) disproportionately affects married women living with HIV (MWLHIV), resulting in undesirable human rights, socio-economic, mental, maternal, and child health consequences. Community Support systems against Violence (CoSaV) are widely available and promising public and voluntary resources for the prevention and mitigation of IPV but are poorly investigated. We set out to identify the predictors for the utilization of the CoSaV among the MWLHIV. This was a quantitative cross-sectional study conducted among 424 consecutively sampled MWLHIV attending the Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) clinic at Kabale Regional Referral Hospital in southwestern Uganda in April 2021. Using an interviewer-administered questionnaire, data were collected on the participant's socio-demographic characteristics, exposure to IPV, awareness about the CoSaV, perceptions about the quality, accessibility and challenges in accessing the CoSaV and the utilization. Modified Poisson regression model was used to identify the predictors for the utilization of CoSaV using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 23.0. The mean age of the 424 participants in the study was 39.5 ± 10.2 years. More than half of the participants 51.9% (220/424) reported exposure to any IPV. Utilization of any CoSaV was found to be above average at 58.3% among the participants. The formal support (police, local government leaders, health workers and counselors) were more frequently utilized compared to the informal support (family, relatives and friends). Utilization of any CoSaV was higher among the women who were aware of the CoSaV and also those who were exposed to violence. Accessibility was identified as an independent predictor for utilization of any CoSaV. Intimate partner violence (IPV) was prevalent among MWLHIV in southwestern Uganda. However, the utilization of any CoSaV was suboptimal. The formal CoSaV were more frequently utilized than the informal support systems. Accessibility was an independent predictor for utilization of any CoSaV. There is need to improve access in order to increase the utilization of the CoSaV and contribute to the attainment of sustainable development goal 5.2.1 and end violence against women.

Perceived social benefits and drawbacks of sea turtle conservation efforts in a globally important sea turtle rookery

Conservation interventions have wide-ranging social impacts - both positive and negative. Yet a limited understanding of how conservation initiatives affect people’s livelihoods often hinders our ability to learn from past efforts and design more effective and equitable conservation measures. This is particularly needed when there is a high degree of overlap between critical habitats and human activities or a high cultural and economic demand for products derived from the conservation target. Here, we explore the social impacts of sea turtle conservation initiatives implemented on São Tomé Island (Gulf of Guinea) as a case study and consider how these might enhance or hinder future efforts. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with key actors involved in the sea turtle trade in December 2014-February 2015 (prior to the implementation of key initiatives) and February-April 2022. Our findings suggest a clear reduction in the scale of the sea turtle trade and the number of main actors involved. However, most respondents previously involved in the trade had experienced economic displacement and several associated social impacts, such as the reduced ability to support family and friends and food insecurity, due to trade restrictions. Financial capital was the main barrier to transitioning to alternative livelihoods, followed by the lack of skills and peer pressure. Finally, this study highlights the importance of considering human dimensions during the planning and implementation phase of conservation actions and the need for more investment focused on the well-being of communities to ensure the long-term survival of endangered species.

Social anxiety and problematic smartphone use in Chinese college students: the mediating roles of coping style and the moderating role of perceived friend support

Social anxiety and problematic smartphone use in Chinese college students: the mediating roles of coping style and the moderating role of perceived friend support

Which types of social support matter for Black sexual minority men coping with internalized homophobia? Findings from a mediation analysis.

Minority stress theory views social support as a protective factor against the effects of minority-specific stressors like internalized homophobia (IH) on mental health in sexual minority populations. However, much of the empirical validation of this theory has been conducted within predominantly White samples, resulting in a limited understanding of how the theory applies to Black sexual minority individuals. Current examinations of social support fail to capture the nuances of how Black sexual minority men may access support systems differently, resulting in a need to investigate how social support, IH, and mental health operate for Black sexual minority men. This study examined relationships between IH, depression, and different types of social support (i.e., family, friends, Black community, gay community) using a mediation model. We used data from the POWER (Promoting Our Worth Equity and Resilience) Study, which recruited Black sexual minority men at Black Pride events across six cities in the United States from 2014 to 2017, to test four mediation pathways concurrently in Stata 17. Participants (N = 4,430) completed a questionnaire assessing a variety of health and life domains, including depression symptoms, internalized homophobia, and social support. IH was positively associated with depression. Lower levels of family, friend, and Black community support were all positively associated with depression symptoms. Additionally, IH was positively associated with all types of support. Finally, family, friend, and Black community support partially mediated the relationship between IH and depression. Results suggest that the relationship between social support and depression is complex for Black sexual minority men. Findings suggest family support is an important factor for clinical intervention efforts targeting depression, and that gay community support systems should assess how their environments can better support Black sexual minority men. Overall, findings demonstrate the necessity of future examination of how social support functions differently within Black sexual minority communities.

Social Support and Physical Activity in College and University Students: A Meta-Analysis.

Although physical activity (PA) has a profound impact on health, many college and university students are still physically inactive. There is some evidence to suggest that social support (SS) could impact the PA levels of students, but the internal relationship and specific effects are not very clear. The purpose of this review was to determine the strength of the relationship between SS and PA and examine whether any potential associations differed in terms of age, gender, and region among college and university students. Studies were identified using the following electronic databases: PubMed, SPORTDiscus, Web of Science, and Sociological Abstracts. Moderator analyses investigating the effects of students' age, gender, and region (nation) were performed. This review included 19 articles. The results showed total SS was significantly associated with PA (r = 0.30, 95% confidence interval [CI]: [0.22, 0.37], p < .001). With respect to different types of support, friend support was more strongly associated with PA than family support. Gender factors had a significant moderating effect on the correlation between SS and PA (QM = 17.433, p < .001). Separate analyses examining the moderating effects of gender (percentage of females) found that the association between SS and PA was stronger with the increase in female percentage. In conclusion, SS is an important factor associated with PA levels and should foster SS within intervention programs according to types of SS and gender differences to increase PA levels among college and university students.

The Relationship between Social Support and Academic Stress to the Onset of Suicidal Ideation in Adolescents

Introduction: Psychological changes like emotional disorders often occur in adolescents that can cause pressure and stress when they cannot cope well. One way to reduce the psychological pain is to self-harm to suicidal thoughts. This study aims to explore the relationship of social support and academic stress to the onset of suicidal ideation in adolescents.&#x0D; Method: This research used a quantitative with cross-sectional design. The respondents were 219 high school teenagers aged more than or equal to 17 years who were selected using purposive sampling techniques. This research was conducted in a senior high school in Denpasar Bali from January to May 2023. Data collection used the MSPSS questionnaire to measure social support, the ESSA questionnaire to measure academic stress, and the SIS questionnaire to measure suicidal ideation. Data were analyzed using the Spearman's rank test because the data was not normally distributed (α≤0.05).&#x0D; Result: The results of this study indicate that there was a significant relationship between social support (family, friends, and special people) and suicidal ideation (p=0.002; p=0.000; p=0.000); however, in the academic stress variable, it was found that there was no significant relationship with suicidal ideation in adolescents (p=0.085).&#x0D; Conclusion: These findings emphasize the importance of social support as a protective factor in adolescents in reducing suicidal ideation. Nursing education can be provided to teachers and students in an effort to prevent early mental health problems.

Striving Towards Independent Living: The Trials and Tribulations of Institutionalised Adolescents in Malaysia

This phenomenological study explores how five institutionalised Malay adolescents used adaptive strategies towards independent living upon being released from welfare institutions. Five 17-year-old Malay Muslim adolescents, three males and two females, were recruited via purposive sampling for a focus group discussion to gather insights into their plans and strategies to cope with life challenges after being released from their respective welfare institutions. Thematic analysis of the FGD data extracted six themes that portrayed the adolescents’ adaptive strategies for facing challenges in life. The themes include making personal preparations, acquiring personal strengths, setting a career direction, exploring the support of friends and outsiders, feeling of being complete, searching for personal necessities and having a sense of responsibility. The findings highlight the need for developing a comprehensive life skills intervention for institutionalised adolescents and psychoeducation counselling modules to alleviate the adolescents’ uncertainties in going through the adjustment phase outside welfare institutions.

Early childhood caries, family functioning, and common mental disorders in a region of Belo Horizonte, Brazil

Aim: This cross-sectional study aimed to analyze the need for dental treatment in preschool children concerning early childhood caries (ECC), evaluated by the School Health Program (SHP); family functioning; and common mental disorders (CMDs) within families in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Methods: A structured questionnaire was applied to the main caretaker of the 61 children by telephone contact. The questions addressed socioeconomic and demographic data; the Questionnaire of General Family Functioning (GFF) sought to investigate family functioning; and the Self-Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-20) served to screen for CMDs among the main caretakers. Secondary data were collected from the SHP to survey the need for oral health treatments. The dependent variable was the need for tooth restoration or extraction. The data were analyzed descriptively and by Pearson’s chi-square and Fisher’s exact tests (p &lt; 0.05), using SPSS v.22.0. Results: The median age of the children was 5 years old, and 32.8% required treatment for dental caries. There was no association between the need for tooth restoration or extraction and socioeconomic factors, family relations, and the presence of CMDs in the main caretaker (p &gt; 0.05). However, there was a greater frequency of need for treatment in families with low income (24.6%) and with less social support (family and friends &lt; 1). Children whose family was included in the Family Grant Program (62.3%), the respondent was the mother (57.4%), had completed high school or higher (36.1%), no paid work (42.6%), with a traditional or nuclear family structure (27.8%), and living in a house with good sanitary conditions (63.9%) presented a lower frequency of need for treatment. The GFF and SRQ-20 values among preschool children with and without the need for dental treatment were similar. Conclusion: There was a trend of a higher need for ECC treatment in children from families with lower income and less familiar and social support.

Longitudinal Associations Between Support and Prosocial Behavior Across Adolescence: The Roles of Fathers, Mothers, Siblings, and Friends

Family members and friends can play an important role in adolescents’ prosocial behavior. To better understand the relation between support and prosocial behavior in adolescence, it’s important to conduct longitudinal studies that distinguish between within-dyad variance and between-dyad variance. The current study investigated longitudinal associations between adolescents’ prosocial behavior, autonomy support, and emotional support from family and friends across adolescence. Across six annual years, 497 Dutch adolescents (284 boys; mean age T1 = 13.03 years, SDage = 0.46), fathers, mothers, siblings, and friends reported on their prosocial behavior. Adolescents also reported on perceived autonomy and emotional support. Between-dyads almost all associations of support and prosocial behavior of family members and friends with adolescents’ prosocial behavior were significant, with higher levels of adolescents’ prosocial behavior being associated with higher levels of prosocial behavior and support from fathers, mothers and friends. Within-dyads, several concurrent associations were significant, but within-dyads links between prosocial behavior and autonomy support are particularly driven by adolescent-mother or adolescent-sibling effects. This study highlights processes that occurred either at the between-dyad level or at the within-dyad level, but that varied per relationship type and that adolescents are the main catalysts in within-dyads changes in prosocial behavior and support. Preregistration: This study was preregistered on 20 January 2020 at https://osf.io/vxkm3/?view_only=dca87fd1585c444ba5cd5a00c22280ae.

Personal, Social, and Workplace Environmental Factors Related to Psychological Well-Being of Staff in University Settings.

Understanding the psychological well-being (PWB) of university staff and factors that influence it is critical for developing intervention programs that promote PWB and enhance productivity and worker engagement. This study aimed to assess the level of PWB in university staff and identify personal, social, and workplace environmental factors related to their PWB. A cross-sectional, correlational study design was used. A convenience sample of university staff was recruited from two universities in Texas. Participants completed an online questionnaire, which included Ryff's PWB scale to measure PWB, along with questions related to personal, social, and workplace factors. Hierarchical multiple regression was used to analyze the influence of these factors on the PWB of university staff. The PWB of university staff (n = 202) was significantly influenced by personal factors (i.e., race and perceived mental health status), social factors (i.e., social support of friends), and workplace environmental factors (i.e., physical demands). To effectively promote PWB among university staff, occupational health nurses should proactively track and monitor their PWB. Policies and interventions should consider the various personal, social, and workplace environment factors identified in this study, such as mental health, social support resources, and physical demands.

Barriers and Drivers of Physical Activity Participation Among Older Adults in Malaysia: A Systematic Review

Introduction: Ageing is commonly linked with physical inactivity. This review was performed to identify the factors associated with participation in physical activity among older adults in Malaysia. Methods: A systematic review was conducted using five databases; Pubmed, Sagepub, Scopus, Cochrane Library and Science Direct. Observational and intervention studies published between January 2010 and December 2020 were included, with Malaysian older adults aged 55 years and older being the main subject. Results: A total of 9 articles were included in the review. Analysis was guided by the Social Ecological Model for Health Promotion. The review had successfully identified gender, age, education level, health reasons, ethnicity and attitude as intrapersonal factors, social support (friend) and marital status as interpersonal factors, and locality as well as availability of facilities as environmental factors. Conclusions: Physical activity participation among Malaysian older adults were mainly determined by intrapersonal factors, particularly gender, health condition and educational level.

Access to eye care and support services among adults from minority ethnic communities living with visual impairment in the United Kingdom.

Despite an increased risk of certain eye conditions which can lead to visual impairment (V.I.), there is evidence of a greater delay to treatment-seeking among adults from minority ethnic communities (MEC). MEC adults may also be underrepresented on V.I. registers, within early intervention services, and among the beneficiaries of national V.I. charities. However, much of this evidence is outdated or anecdotal. This secondary analysis of V.I. Lives survey data explored use of eye health and support services and mobility aids among a matched control sample of 77 MEC and 77 adults aged 18 and over from white communities (WC). Participants were matched on age, gender, UK region and urban/rural setting. Additional subgroup analysis was conducted for Asian (n = 46) and black participants (n = 22). There were no significant group differences in areas such as eye health service use, registration status, contact with charities, and level of practical support received. But MEC participants were significantly more likely than WC participants to have received direct payments from social services to cover their care needs, Χ2 (1, 154) = 8.27, p = 0.004, and to use apps on their mobile for mobility, Χ2 (1, 154) = 5.75, p = 0.017. In contrast, WC participants were significantly more likely to agree that they were getting the level of emotional support to get on with their life, U = 3,638, p = 0.010, to feel confident to ask their friends for support, U = 2,416, p = 0.040, and to have a guide dog for mobility, Χ2 (1, 154) = 3.62, p = 0.057, although the latter did not reach statistical significance. Within the MEC group, Asian participants were significantly more likely than black participants to use a long cane, Χ2 (1, 68) = 7.24, p = 0.007, but they were significantly less likely to agree that they had received the right level of support when they started to experience V.I., U = 236.5, p = 0.040. The preliminary findings suggests that there is scope to increase support provided by V.I. charities and the V.I. register, although, contrary to existing evidence, there were no statistically significant differences in eye health service use, registration status and use of wider support services. Further research is required to confirm these findings and explore reasons for differences.

Behavioral change of eating habits and physical activity in overweight Mexican women: barriers and facilitators/Cambio conductual de hábitos alimentarios y actividad física en mujeres mexicanas con sobrepeso: barreras y facilitadores

Overweight and obesity are risk factors for the development of chronic diseases, mostly attributed to physical inactivity and unhealthy eating habits. The aim of this study was to identify the barriers and facilitators for behavioral change in physical activity, and the regulation of eating habits in a group of overweight Mexican women to design a behavior modification intervention based on the Capacity, Opportunity, Motivation and Behavior (COM-B) model. A qualitative study was carried out using an action-research design; Through a focus group, data was collected from six women with a semi-structured interview. A deductive content analysis was carried out, and we could identify that the main barriers to behavioral changes in health were information deficit, negative emotional states, environmental interactions, and lack of social support; likewise, the main facilitators include the consequences of behavior at an aesthetic and health level and having the support of family and friends. Based on what was found, a group of intervention procedures are suggested that correspond to the COM-B model and that can be applied to design and test the effects of interventions on health behaviors and thus prevent the development of chronic diseases.

Analysis of prescription compliance and influencing factors in cardiac rehabilitation after surgery in children with congenital heart disease based on generalized trust theory.

To understand the compliance, influencing factors, and action path of family cardiac rehabilitation exercise prescriptions for children after congenital heart disease surgery. A random sampling method was used to select 200 paediatric patients and their parents from a paediatric hospital in Shanghai. Among them, 57 cases (28.5%) of children's families followed the cardiac rehabilitation exercise prescription. Path analysis showed that peak oxygen uptake exerted a negative impact on the compliance of family cardiac-rehabilitation prescriptions for patients after congenital heart disease surgery through doctor-patient trust, with a standardized path coefficient of -0.246 (P = 0.001). Disease-related knowledge exerted a positive effect on the compliance of family cardiac-rehabilitation prescriptions for children after congenital heart surgery through doctor-patient trust, with a standardized path coefficient of 0.353 (P < 0.001). The dimension of friend support in social support had a direct positive effect on the compliance of family cardiac-rehabilitation prescriptions for children after cardiac surgery, with a standardized path coefficient of 0.641 (P = 0.006). The compliance of cardiac rehabilitation exercise prescription in children with congenital heart disease is not good and is affected by many factors, and there is a complex path relationship between various factors; the kilogram oxygen consumption of the child, the disease-related knowledge of the caregiver, and social support all play important roles in the compliance of the child's family's health prescription. ChiCTR2200062022.

Evaluation of a Life Functioning Goal Attainment Psychosocial Treatment Program for Adults with Psychotic Disorders

Purpose: To determine if the use of an integrated goal attainment cognitive behavioral social skill training program can impact serious mental illness related treatment and life functioning avolition. Methods: The attendance and goal attainment progress of thirty-eight serious mental ill diagnosed adults admitted to psychiatric clinic’s integrated goal attainment cognitive behavioral social skills group training program were studied. Demographic (age, gender, race, education), clinical (psychiatric diagnosis, trauma history), and life experience (work, income, housing, relational status, friendship support, incarceration and drug arrest histories) variables were compared to identify possible program attendance and goal attainment level associations and differences. Results: Participants attended a mean of 8 program days of the 6 to 8-week program with younger and unmarried attending significantly more days than older and married participants. Greater attendance and participation rates were positively correlated with higher levels of assessed goal attainment. Conclusions: Individuals with serious mental illness conditions are likely to voluntarily attend and participate in psychosocial intervention programs focused on major area life functioning goal attainment. Higher levels of attendance and participation were associated with higher levels of short-term goal attainment. Functioning focused psychosocial interventions may be effective in reducing serious mental illness related avolition.