Adolescents and their networks of social support: real connections in real lives?

Abstract

A B S T RA C TSocial support is widely seen as an integral component for coping with the stresses of everyday life. While there are various sources and types of support potentially available to young people, it is perhaps less obvious the extent to which young people differentially experience these sources and types. Anecdotal evidence suggests that context, culture and other factors unique to local life shape the many dimensions of social support for youth. In this paper, we seek to examine this research need in more detail by focusing on a broad range of factors shaping youth social support and youth well-being. Drawing on mixed methods research, we examine social support evidence for adolescents in Florida, USA, and Offaly, Ireland. Through this research, we investigate how the connection between social support and well-being bears out in these two different sociocultural contexts; second, we seek to understand whether types and sources of social support differ among youth in both countries; and what relationship exists between well-being and types and sources of support. Comparing similar measures of social support across two distinct societal contexts allows us to determine similarities and differences, while also providing suggestions for application that can shape future programmes and policy.

Networks of Care among Families with Internationally Adopted Children in Spain

“…Apart from these novel insights, our data confirm the findings of previous studies, namely that support received from informal networks is the most helpful for adoptive parents; a factor which underlines the importance of the family's own informal support network (Kramer & Houston, 1998). Our results also support the theses of McGrath et al (2014) that the perception of social support may be even more relevant than the actual support received especially when it comes to provision of authority and emotional support, although that influence does not always come from paternal/maternal figures or even from adult individuals. In this light, siblings often become a mainstay resource for post-adoption families, regardless of their non-adult status.…”

“…In our research, all interviewees acknowledged social support as a strategic constituent of coping with vulnerability in everyday life. Furthermore, several studies have found that the mere perception of the availability of social support may be as important as the actual support received (Mcgrath et al, 2014). Such support may originate in formal (institutional) or informal (personal contacts) sources, and cover various day-to-day aspects of care both in post-adoption contexts (practical assistance, emotional support or advice, and recognition; see Cutrona, 2000) and during the pre-adoptive period (emotional support, informational assistance, and specific aid; see Groza, 1996).…”

Chats Over Spats: Exploring Social Media Use for Mentorship in Youth Development Programs

“…The area of social support remains a highly referenced and significant concept across a number of disciplines. In particular, a growing amount of recent literature has begun to delve deeper into discussions of the intersection of social support and marginalization as it relates to differences in race [27], economic status [29], sexuality, [25], and other related factors [3] [26]. The work of Louis Leung examines the particular question of how online participation might be used as an alternative means for social support, and highlights the intersection between Internet use and social support through his research [20][21] [22].…”

Neighborhood Disorganization, Social Support, Substance Use and Functioning amongst Adolescents; an Analysis of the Ohio Behavioral Health Juvenile Justice Initiative

“…Conceptual definition-Social support is the perception and actuality that one is cared for, has assistance available from other people and is a part of a supportive social network (McGrath, Brennan, Dolan & Barnett, 2012;Zimmer-Gembeck & Skinner, 2011;Langford, Bowsher, Maloney & Lillis, 1997). There are four common functions of social support that includes emotional, tangible, informational, and companionship or intangible support (Cutrona, 2000).…”

“…Support is seen as avenues for sharing, attachment, resource allocation, dependence and self-confidence and selfefficacy. Social support includes the degree to which a person is integrated in a social network that can come from various sources including family, friends or adult figures that are involved in the adolescent's life such as a teacher (Frison & Eggermont, 2015;McGrath, Brennan, Dolan & Barnett, 2012;Zimmer-Gembeck & Skinner, 2011).…”