Changes in Social Network Diversity and Perceived Social Support After Psychiatric Hospitalization: Results From a Longitudinal Study

The current study examined social support as a mediator between maltreatment experiences (number of victimizations, maltreatment types) and depressive symptoms in adolescence. The data came from the first two time points of a longitudinal study of the effects of maltreatment on adolescent development. The enrolled sample were 454 male and females ( n = 303 maltreated, n = 151 comparison) between 9 and 13 years ( M age = 10.82); Time 2 (T2) occurred approximately 1 year after baseline. Maltreatment data came from case records; participants reported on perceived social support and depressive symptoms. Results from path models indicated that depressive symptoms mediated the association between maltreatment experiences (i.e., physical abuse, neglect, and number of maltreatment victimizations) and family social support. There was no evidence that social support functioned as a mediator. This is the first study to find support for depressive symptoms as a mechanism linking maltreatment with decreased perceived family support. These findings point to the importance of assessing mental health and social support simultaneously to understand the functioning of youth with maltreatment histories.

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Associations Between Social Support, Social Networks, and Financial Exploitation in Older Adults

Journal of Applied Gerontology ◽

10.1177/0733464816642584 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 37 (8) ◽

pp. 990-1011 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Scott R. Beach ◽

Richard Schulz ◽

Rodlescia Sneed

Keyword(s):

Social Support ◽

Older Adults ◽

Social Networks ◽

Social Network ◽

Perceived Social Support ◽

Population Based ◽

Network Size ◽

Social Network Size ◽

Financial Exploitation ◽

The Social

Social support and social networks are important correlates of elder mistreatment. This study tests hypothesized associations between perceived social support, social network size, and financial exploitation (FE). A population-based survey of 903 older adults (60+) in Allegheny County (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) found that lower perceived social support and larger social networks were simultaneously associated with higher risk for FE since age 60, controlling for known risk factors. The same associations were found for FE in the last 6 months. Older adults with larger social networks combined with lower perceived social support were most likely to report FE. When it comes to the role of social relationships and risk for FE, “more may not always be better.” Encouragement to widen the social network by “making new friends” should be stressed less than making sure these new network members will truly be supportive of the older adult.

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The Direct and Indirect Relationship between Interpersonal Self-Support Traits and Perceived Social Support: A Longitudinal Study

Current Psychology ◽

10.1007/s12144-016-9491-6 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 37 (1) ◽

pp. 73-81 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Jie Liu ◽

Ling - Xiang Xia

Keyword(s):

Social Support ◽

Longitudinal Study ◽

Perceived Social Support ◽

Indirect Relationship

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Perceived Social Support and Social Network of Low-Income Mothers of Infants and Preschoolers: Pre-and Postparenting Program

Journal of Community Health Nursing ◽

10.1207/s15327655jchn1101_2 ◽

1994 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 11-20 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Rachel Zachariah

Keyword(s):

Social Support ◽

Social Network ◽

Low Income ◽

Perceived Social Support ◽

Low Income Mothers

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From Faux-Social to Pro-Social: The Mediating Role of Copresence in Developing Expectations of Social Support in a Game

Presence Teleoperators & Virtual Environments ◽

10.1162/pres_a_00246 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 25 (1) ◽

pp. 61-74 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Donghee Yvette Wohn

Keyword(s):

Social Support ◽

Social Network ◽

Perceived Social Support ◽

Explanatory Power ◽

Helping Behavior ◽

Instrumental Support ◽

Network Games ◽

Mediating Role ◽

Simple Action

Social network games—games that incorporate network data from social network sites—heavily rely on helping behavior between players as a central mechanism of play. Does this “faux social” behavior still generate expectations of social support among players? An experiment (N = 88) was conducted to examine the effect of helping on copresence and perceived social support between strangers playing the Facebook game Cityville. Three types of social support were examined: instrumental support within the game, instrumental support outside of the game, and emotional support. Findings indicate that the simple action of being helped in a game generates copresence, the feeling of proximity in a virtual environment. Copresence was a positive predictor of all three types of perceived social support but had highest explanatory power for instrumental support within the game.

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