Little is known about social networks in childhood, and even less is known about the networks of ethnically diverse children. Interviews were conducted with 333 African-American, Anglo/European-American, and Hispanic-American public school children in Grades 1-2,4-5, and 8-9. The research was based on the social convoy model (R. L. Kahn & T. C. Antonucci, 1980), in which social networks are viewed as dynamic hierarchic structures affording the provision of support across the life span. An adapted convoy mapping procedure evidenced good test-retest reliability at all ages, and convoy support measures were associated with self-concept and teacher-rated sociability and mood. For all ethnic groups, the results reflect the significance of close family relations across age, an increase in involvement with extended family in middle childhood, and the emergent role of peers as support providers in adolescence.
Much has been written about social support, but little is known about the processes that promote continuity or discontinuity in supportive relationships. A proposed model of relationship processes (Levitt, 1991) specifies that changes in the quality of close relationships are likely to occur when expectations for social support are tested and disconfirmed. Relationships are particularly vulnerable to change after major life events, such as childbirth, when increased support needs precipitate the testing of expectations. In a preliminary assessment of this model, 43 mothers were interviewed at 1 month and 13 months after birth. Changes in relationship satisfaction were related strongly to the extent to which mothers perceived that their expectations for support had been disconfirmed. The results are consistent with the proposed model and suggest the value of considering the effects of social support in light of the individual's expectancies.
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