Barbara R. Sarason

Assessing Social Support: The Social Support Questionnaire.

Abstract : A measure of social support, the Social Support Questionnaire (SSQ), is described and four empirical studies employing it are described. The SSQ yields scores for (a) number of social supports, and (b) satisfaction with social support that is available. Three of the studies deal with the SSQs psychometric properties, its correations with measures of personality and adjustment, and the relationship of the SSQ to positive and negative life changes. The fourth study was an experimental investigation of the relationship between social support and persistence in working on a complex, frustrating task. The research reported suggests that the SSQ is a reliable instrument, and that social support is (1) more strongly related to positive than negative life changes, (2) more related in a negative direction to psychological discomfort among women than men, and (3) an asset in enabling a person to persist at a task under frustrating conditions. Research and clinical implications are discussed. (Author)

A Brief Measure of Social Support: Practical and Theoretical Implications

Two studies leading to the development of a short form of the Social Support Questionnaire (SSQ) are reported. In Study 1 three items selected for high correlations with the total score (SSQ3) were administered to 182 university students together with several personality measures. SSQ3 had acceptable test-retest reliability and correlations with personality variables similar to those of the SSQ. Internal reliability was marginal although acceptable for an instrument with so few items. Study 2 employed three sets of data in developing a six-item instrument (SSQ6). The SSQ6 had high internal reliability and correlated highly with the SSQ and similarly to it with personality variables. The research findings accompanying the development of the short form social support measure suggest that perceived social support in adults may be a reflection of early attachment experience.

Social Support: Theory, Research and Applications

I Theoretical and Methodological Issues.- 1 Conceptual and Theoretical Dilemmas Facing Social Support.- 2 Social Support: Theoretical Advances, Recent Findings and Pressing Issues.- 3 Social Support - Insights from Assessment and Experimentation.- 4 Social Support and Psychological Well-Being: Theoretical Possibilities.- 5 Measuring the Functional Components of Social Support.- 6 Social Support and Social Health.- II Human Development, Personality and Social Networks.- 7 Social Networks and the Ecology of Human Development: Theory, Research and Application.- 8 Longitudinal Course of Social Support Among Men in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.- 9 Intimacy, Social Support, and Locus of Control as Moderators of Stress.- 10 Coping Styles, Social Support and Sex-Differences.- 11 A Conceptualization of Professional Womens Interpersonal Fields: Social Support, Reference Groups, and Persons-to-be-Reckoned-With.- 12 From Social Support to Social Network.- III Loneliness and Perceived Support.- 13 The Psychology of Loneliness: Some Personality Issues in the Study of Social Support.- 14 The Functions of Social Bonds: Perspectives from Research on Social Support, Loneliness and Social Isolation.- 15 Loneliness Research: Basic Concepts and Findings.- 16 Perceived Support and Social Interaction Among Friends and Confidants.- IV Stress, Coping and Maladaption.- 17 Life Stress and Human Disorder: Conceptualization and Measurement of the Disordered Group.- 18 Life Events, Social Support and Clinical Psychiatric Disorder.- 19 Social Support, Life Events and Depression.- 20 Social Support and Children of Divorce.- 21 Limitations of Social Support in the Stress Process.- V Helping and the Costs of Caring.- 22 Theory into Practice: Issues That Surface in Planning Interventions Which Mobilize Support.- 23 Social Support and the Alleviation of Loss.- 24 Reactions to Victims of Life Crisis: Support Attempts That Fail.- 25 The Costs of Caring: A Perspective on the Relationship Between Sex and Psychological Distress.- Author Index.

Sourcebook of Social Support and Personality

Conceptual and Methodological Issues in Research on Social Support and the Personality: Personality and Social Support Processes: A Conceptual Overview G.R. Pierce, et al. A Relational Schema Approach to Social Support T. Pierce, et al. The Dynamics of Volitional Reliance: A Motivational Perspective on Dependence, Independence, and Social Support J. Solky-Butzel, R.M. Ryan. Coping as an Individual Difference Variable J.T. Ptacek, S. Gross. Social Support, Personality, and Mental and Physical Health: Social Support, Coping, and Psychological Adjustment: A Resource Model C.J. Holahan, et al. Social Support and Personality in Depression: Implications from Behavioral Genetics J.E. Roberts, I.H. Gotlib. Social Support and Personality in Life Stress Adjustment L.H. Cohen, et al. Social Support in Marriage An Analysis of Intraindividual and Interpersonal Components L.A. Pasch, et al. Social Support, Personality and Supportive Interactions: Adult Attachment Patterns and Social Support Processes K. Bartholomew, et al. Personality and Help-Seeking: Autonomous vs. Dependent A. Nadler, J. Fisher. Social Support, Stress and Personality: Do All Women Benefit from Husbands Presence During Childbirth? G. Keinan. 9 Additional Articles. Indexes.

Life events, social support, and illness.

&NA; Positive and negative life events and social support were correlated with illness among Navy Submarine School students. Negative, but not positive, life events in the recent past were related to reports of illness. Although social support by itself was not related to illness reports, the relationship between negative life events and illness was stronger among subjects with low rather than high levels of social support. The results suggest the importance of assessing both stressful life events and moderators of response to stress, such as social support, in investigating the role played by personality in illness.

Concomitants of Social Support: Social Skills, Physical Attractiveness and Gender.

Abstract : This study investigated the naturally occuring relationship between social support, as measured by self-report and social skills as measured by self-report, a variety of behavioral measures, and rated physical attractiveness. Subjects were 84 male and 84 female introductory psychology students selected on the basis of high and low number scores on the Social Support Questionnaire. The subjects were videotaped in two dyadic situations with a same sex partner. Subjects also completed the Loneliness Questionnaire, a special social competence questionnaire, a story completion task and self and partner evaluations. The videotaped behavior was rated qualitatively and quantitatively. Significant differences were found in the social skills of subjects high and low in social support. Women also were found to be significantly more socially skilled and were rated as being more physically attractive than men. The various self-report and behavioral measures of social skills were significantly interrelated. The results help to delineate more clearly the dimensions of social support by demonstrating the relationship between social support and social skill.

Perceived social support and working models of self and actual others.

Etude des relations entre le soutien social percu et (a) les perceptions de soi et des autres et (b) la perception de soi par les autres. Le role de la personnalite et des relations personnelles dans le soutien social percu est discute

Stress and Social Support

Although there are differences in how stress is conceptualized, there is agreement that challenge and threat, key features of community cataclysms, are among its most active ingredients. A major task for stress researchers is identifying pertinent individual difference variables regarding how people respond to particular types of challenge and threat. Another major task for stress researchers concerns the development of intervention programs that increase the likelihood of personal effectiveness under challenging circumstances. One intriguing finding of stress research is that, whereas some people seem to deteriorate rapidly under stress, others show only minimal or moderate deterioration; still others seem unaffected. Stress can be a catastrophe, but it can also be an opportunity for personal growth. It brings forth coping efforts that vary in effectiveness.

Assessing the Impact of Life Changes

This chapter reviews the literature on life changes, particularly as they relate to health, disease, and recovery from illness. One of the areas of greatest current activity concerns the quantitative assessment of these changes, which are often referred to as stressful life events. We shall review this topic and provide a theoretical perspective for future research.

Social support: Mapping the construct:

Social support is a construct with multiple dimensions that can be approached at multiple levels. Findings from a variety of disciplines and recognition of its bidirectional nature can help map the construct. Bidirectionality is a process that requires attention to moderators, such as, gender, cultural change, and personal development, together with the relationship between the receiver and the provider of support. Both close personal ties and weaker ones that often are part of community involvement need to be taken into account in order to map the construct comprehensively.