People occupying stigmatized social positions often withdraw from sources of social support, becoming stressed, depressed, and isolated. Homelessness is globally prevalent and stigmatized. Despite the overwhelming evidence that homelessness is associated with experiences of isolation and poor mental health, there is a sparse understanding of how stigma and social relationships interact with mental health in this context. This mixed-method study presents evidence that relationship breakdown is a common precedent to experiences of homelessness. It further shows that people withdraw from potential sources of support due to the stigma associated with homelessness. The findings demonstrate that universal forms of social contact and perceived social support do not consistently associate with mental health. Rather, distinct types of support, from different support sources, are associated with higher levels of mental health. Policy implications considering the relationship of stigma and social relationships within the context of homelessness are discussed.

Socioeconomic status and social class are measured with a wide and complex range of indicators with little attention paid to the impact these choices may have on empirical findings. This research tests whether different socioeconomic indicators consistently predict motivational differences in the same sample. Two studies were conducted in the United Kingdom. The first study (N = 430) examined the relationship between income, employment, education and personal values. The study found inconsistent relationships between different socioeconomic indicators and value preferences. A similar pattern of inconsistent relationships between socioeconomic status indicators and measures of self-mastery, and personal values, was found in the second study (N = 959). The only universal finding across all socioeconomic indicators in both studies was the null relationship with self-transcendence value preferences. These results indicate that we need to be more cautious in framing socioeconomic status as a construct, and more rigorous in assessing differences observed across social classes.

Socioeconomic status and social class are measured with a wide and complex range of indicators with little attention paid to the impact these choices may have on empirical findings. This research tests whether different socioeconomic indicators consistently predict motivational differences in the same sample. Two studies were conducted in the United Kingdom. The first study (N = 430) examined the relationship between income, employment, education and personal values. The study found inconsistent relationships between different socioeconomic indicators and value preferences. A similar pattern of inconsistent relationships between socioeconomic status indicators and measures of selfmastery, and personal values, was found in the second study (N = 959). The only universal finding across all socioeconomic indicators in both studies was the null relationship with self-transcendence value preferences. These results indicate that we need to be more cautious in framing socioeconomic status as a construct and more rigorous in assessing differences observed across social classes. RESUMENPara medir el nivel socioeconómico (NSE) y la clase social se utiliza una gama compleja de indicadores, sin prestar apenas atención al impacto que su selección puede ejercer en los resultados empíricos. Esta investigación explora si los distintos indicadores socioeconómicos predicen de forma consistente las diferencias motivacionales en una misma muestra. Se realizaron dos estudios en el Reino Unido. En el primero (N = 430) se analizó la relación entre ingresos, empleo, educación y valores personales. Los resultados revelaron relaciones inconsistentes entre los distintos indicadores socioeconómicos y las preferencias de valores. En el segundo estudio (N = 959) se identificó un patrón similar de relaciones inconsistentes entre los indicadores socioeconómicos y las medidas de autodominio y los valores ARTICLE HISTORY