Protective Role Of Social Support Research Articles

Israeli Adolescents Exposed to Community and Terror Violence: The Protective Role of Social Support

This study investigates how social support may protect Israeli early adolescents who have witnessed community violence from engaging in violent behavior when they have also witnessed terror violence. The study examines how support from parents, school, and friends could serve as protective, despite the interactive risk effects of witnessing community and terror violence. In general, results indicate that support from parents operated as a protective factor, whereas support from friends acted as a risk by increasing the likelihood of violent behavior. Support from school has both a protective and risk effect, depending on the type of violence exposure witnessed. The extent to which these facets of social support operated as risk or protective factors is conditional on whether youth had also witnessed terror violence, and terror violence appear to moderate each of the three facets of support differently. The implications of these findings and intervention initiatives for Israeli youth are discussed.

The relation of perceived and received social support to mental health among first responders: a meta‐analytic review

AbstractThere are plenty of theories that may support the protective role of social support in the aftermath of potentially traumatic events. This meta‐analytic review examined the role of received and perceived social support in promoting mental health among first responders (e.g., firefighters, police officers, and paramedics or emergency medical services personnel). Results showed that the effect sizes derived from 37 empirical studies ranged from 0 to 0.46. The overall weighted mean effect size was of medium magnitude (r=0.27). Moreover, moderator analysis showed that the effect size of perceived social support (r=0.31) was significantly higher than the effect size of received social support (r=0.22). Participants' age and gender or research design did not exert an influence on the relationship between social support and mental health. Theoretical implications and limitations are discussed. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Acculturative stress, social support, and coping: Relations to psychological adjustment among Mexican American college students.

This study examined the relations between acculturative stress and psychological functioning, as well as the protective role of social support and coping style, in a sample of 148 Mexican American college students (67% female, 33% male; mean age = 23.05 years, SD = 3.33). In bivariate analyses, acculturative stress was associated with higher levels of anxiety and depressive symptoms. Moreover, active coping was associated with better adjustment (lower depression), whereas avoidant coping predicted poorer adjustment (higher levels of depression and anxiety). Tests of interaction effects indicated that parental support and active coping buffered the effects of high acculturative stress on anxiety symptoms and depressive symptoms. In addition, peer support moderated the relation between acculturative stress and anxiety symptoms. Implications for reducing the effects of acculturative stress among Mexican American college students are discussed.

Interpersonal Support Evaluation List (ISEL) - College Version: Validation and Application in a Greek Sample

a) To validate the Interpersonal Support Evaluation List (ISEL)--college version in a Greek population sample and b) To test the hypothesis that students scoring high on the ISEL present stronger resistance to stressful experiences and fewer psychological or physical problems. Rating scale assessment and analytical cross-sectional study. The ISEL was translated into Greek and then back-translated into English. A random sample of 145 students of the Faculty of Medicine completed: a) the translated version of the ISEL, b) the Symptom Check List 90-R (SCL-90-R), c) the Scale of Stressful Life Events (SSLE) and d) a questionnaire about physical health problems. Comparisons were conducted between the scores on the ISEL and the scores on the other measures. Correlations were also calculated between the scores on the Global Severity Index (GSI) of the SCL-90-R and SSLE, separately for students with high, fair and low social support, in order to assess the protective role of social support. The test-retest reliability and the internal consistency of the ISEL were also investigated. The students with a lower score in social support reported more psychological and somatic symptoms. The students with a higher score in social support were protected against the harmful effect of stressful events. The ISEL presents good internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha: 0.452-0.752) and test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC): 0.631-0.847). The ISEL is a valid and reliable instrument for measuring social support among Greek students. A higher score on the ISEL is correlated with a significant stress-buffering effect.

Resilience in Adolescents: Protective Role of Social Support, Coping Strategies, Self-Esteem, and Social Activities on Experience of Stress and Depression

In this study, 297 adolescents (141 eighth graders and 156 eleventh graders) were classified into 3 groups created from crossing scores of depressive symptoms and frequency of daily hassles: well adjusted, resilient, and vulnerable. A discriminant function analysis was performed to investigate group differences on self-esteem, social support, different strategies of coping, and different aspects of social life. The analysis revealed that self-esteem, problem-solving coping strategies, and antisocial and illegal activities with peers helped to discriminate groups: Well-adjusted adolescents had higher self-esteem than adolescents in the 2 other groups; in addition, resilient adolescents had higher self-esteem than vulnerable adolescents. For the second significant discriminating variables, antisocial and illegal activities with peers, both resilient and vulnerable adolescents had higher scores than well-adjusted adolescents. Finally, resilient adolescents had higher scores on problem-solving coping strategies than adolescents in the 2 other groups.

Maternal caregiving style and infant fussing and crying in a Danish community sample: Preliminary findings

Cette étude porte sur la relation, dans l’âge avancé, entre le soutien social et des indicateurs de santé mentale : la dépression et l’estime de soi.Une méthodologie statistique innovante a été mise en œuvre : l’analyse en cluster. Quatre-vingt-treize participants âgés vivant au domicile ont été recrutés. Différentes échelles ont permis d’évaluer le soutien social, la dépression et l’estime de soi.Des analyses en cluster ont permis d’identifier trois profils de soutien social : Élevé, Modéré et Faible. La comparaison de ces trois profils a mis en évidence une forte association entre soutien social et les variables dépression et estime de soi. En effet, les personnes âgées rapportant un haut niveau de soutien social présentent des niveaux de dépression moindres, associés à une estime de soi élevée.La relation entre soutien social et santé mentale est confirmée. De possibles implications cliniques sont discutées.This study investigated the relation in later life between social support and different mental health variables: depression and self-esteem. Social support was considered according to Cutrona and Russell's approach, which includes six dimensions: attachment, social integration, reassurance of worth, reliable alliance, guidance, and opportunity for nurturance. Several authors attributed to social support a major protective role in mental health. In fact, different links between social support and mental health variables were found in adulthood. More and more studies deal with social support in later life. In particular, the protective role of social support in stressful live events and its relation to mental health or illness have been examined. The objective of this study was to clarify the links between social support, depression and self-esteem in later life, with an alternative statistical method.A cluster analysis was performed in order to group together older persons on the basis of their social support level. Ninety-three French older people living in their home were recruited, with a mean age of 70.72 (SD: 7.06). The social support was assessed with Caron’ social support scale (The Social Provision Scale) which measures the six functions of social relationships. Depression and self-esteem were evaluated respectively with the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. Cluster analysis was chosen because it allows to bound natural groupings within data and to determine homogeneous groups inside the sample of the study. Then, ANOVA were performed in order to compare these groups as for their depression and self-esteem scores.First, results revealed three social support profiles or groups: High social support level, Moderate social support level and Low social support level. Group with high social support level presents high level for all dimensions of social support: attachment, social integration, reassurance of worth, reliable alliance, guidance, and opportunity for nurturance. In addition, groups with moderate and low levels of social support are characterized respectively by moderate and low levels for all dimensions of social support. Second, different relationships of these profiles with depression and self-esteem were found. The older persons with high level of social support present a low depression level associated high self-esteem. Moreover, participants with moderate or low social support profile present high depression and low self-esteem levels.The relationship between social support and mental health was brought to light. The clinical implications and possible interventions are discussed. In particular, different methodological and conceptual approaches of social support interventions are evoked, such as interventions, which include family, friends or peers.

Measuring social support: An interrater reliability study of 18 patients with breast cancer assessed with a shortened version of the Self-Evaluation and Social Support (SESS) schedule

The Bedford College Self-Evaluation and Social Support (SESS) schedule is an extensive interview that assesses the protective role of social support from close relationships concerning the risk of psychiatric disorders after major stressors. We present the results of an interrater reliability study with a shortened Norwegian version (SESSsv) applied to 18 women with breast cancer. There was very good accordance between two raters with an ICC 1.1 of 0.80-0.93 for confiding behavior, active emotional support, and practical help. There was 89-94% agreement in assessing the seldom-reported negative interactions. We conclude that the SESSsv is a helpful, reliable, and easy-to-use way of assessing the qualitative content of a patient's close relationships. A Norwegian version of SESSsv is presented in the Appendix.