Merging Empiricism and Humanism: Role of Social Validity in the School-Wide Positive Behavior Support Model

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Marchant, Michelle; Heath, Melissa Allen; Miramontes, Nancy Y.

2013-01-01

Criteria for evaluating behavior support programs are changing. Consumer-based educational and behavioral programs, such as School-Wide Positive Behavior Support (SWPBS), are particularly influenced by consumer opinion. Unfortunately, the need for and use of social validity measures have not received adequate attention in the empirical literature…

Non-verbal behavioral interactions of depressed patients with partners and strangers : The role of behavioral social support and involvement in depression persistence

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hale, WW; Jansen, JHC; Bouhuys, AL; Jenner, JA; vandenHoofdakker, RH

Excessive support seeking and lack of receiving social support have been associated with depression onset and unfavorable course of depression. It has been assumed that social support is effected by observable behaviors that express involvement. Twenty-five patients with major depression were

HIV-Risk Behaviors and Social Support Among Men and Women Attending Alcohol-Serving Venues in South Africa: Implications for HIV Prevention.

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Velloza, Jennifer; Watt, Melissa H; Abler, Laurie; Skinner, Donald; Kalichman, Seth C; Dennis, Alexis C; Sikkema, Kathleen J

2017-11-01

Alcohol use is associated with increased HIV-risk behaviors, including unprotected sex and number of sex partners. Alcohol-serving venues can be places to engage in HIV-related sexual risk behaviors, but are also important sites of social support for patrons, which may mitigate risks. We sought to examine the relationship between alcohol-serving venue attendance, social support, and HIV-related sexual risk behavior, by gender, in South Africa. Adult patrons (n = 496) were recruited from six alcohol-serving venues and completed surveys assessing frequency of venue attendance, venue-based social support, and recent sexual behaviors. Generalized estimating equations tested associations between daily venue attendance, social support, and sexual behaviors, separately by gender. Interaction effects between daily attendance and social support were assessed. Models were adjusted for venue, age, education, and ethnicity. Daily attendance at venues was similar across genders and was associated with HIV-related risk behaviors, but the strength and direction of associations differed by gender. Among women, daily attendance was associated with greater number of partners and higher proportion of unprotected sex. Social support was a significant moderator, with more support decreasing the strength of the relationship between attendance and risk. Among men, daily attendance was associated with a lower proportion of unprotected sex; no interaction effects were found for attendance and social support. Frequent venue attendance is associated with additional HIV-related risks for women, but this risk is mitigated by social support in venues. These results were not seen for men. Successful HIV interventions in alcohol-serving venues should address the gendered context of social support and sexual risk behavior.

Association between suicidal ideation and behavior, and depression, anxiety, and perceived social support in cancer patients.

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Balcı Şengül, Melike Ceyhan; Kaya, Vildan; Şen, Cenk Ahmet; Kaya, Kemal

2014-02-27

The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between suicidal behavior and associated factors such as depression, anxiety, and perceived social support level in cancer patients. The study group included 102 patients who were under treatment in the oncology department and the control group included 100 individuals with similar sociodemographic features. A sociodemographic information form, Beck depression inventory, Beck anxiety inventory, suicidal behavior inventory, suicidal ideation inventory, and multidimensional inventory of perceived social support were used. The mean Beck depression inventory and Beck anxiety inventory scores in the study group were significantly higher compared to the control group. Thirteen patients in the study group attempted suicide, whereas 3 individuals attempted suicide in the control group. Similarly, the mean suicide behavior and ideation scores in the study group were significantly higher compared to the control group. The mean total multidimensional inventories of perceived social support score, as well as the mean family and friend sub-inventory scores in the control group were significantly higher compared to the study group. This study revealed that depression and anxiety occur frequently in cancer patients. Suicide attempts and ideation are higher in cancer patients compared to the control group. Social support perceived from family and friends is lower in cancer patients. Suicide attempts are correlated with depression, anxiety, low level of perceived social support, and advanced disease stage.

Association of parental social support with energy balance-related behaviors in low-income and ethnically diverse children: a cross-sectional study

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Natalia I. Heredia

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Parents play an important role in providing their children with social support for healthy eating and physical activity. However, different types of social support (e.g., instrumental, emotional, modeling, rules might have different results on children’s actual behavior. The purpose of this study was to assess the association of the different types of social support with children’s physical activity and eating behaviors, as well as to examine whether these associations differ across racial/ethnic groups. Methods We surveyed 1169 low-income, ethnically diverse third graders and their caregivers to assess how children’s physical activity and eating behaviors (fruit and vegetable and sugar-sweetened beverage intake were associated with instrumental social support, emotional social support, modeling, rules and availability of certain foods in the home. We used sequential linear regression to test the association of parental social support with a child’s physical activity and eating behaviors, adjusting for covariates, and then stratified to assess the differences in this association between racial/ethnic groups. Results Parental social support and covariates explained 9–13% of the variance in children’s energy balance-related behaviors. Family food culture was significantly associated with fruit and vegetable and sugar-sweetened beverage intake, with availability of sugar-sweetened beverages in the home also associated with sugar-sweetened beverage intake. Instrumental and emotional support for physical activity were significantly associated with the child’s physical activity. Results indicate that the association of various types of social support with children’s physical activity and eating behaviors differ across racial/ethnic groups. Conclusions These results provide considerations for future interventions that aim to enhance parental support to improve children’s energy balance-related behaviors.

Social support for diabetes illness management: supporting adolescents and caregivers.

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Idalski Carcone, April; Ellis, Deborah A; Weisz, Arlene; Naar-King, Sylvie

2011-10-01

The aim of this research study was to examine the relationship between 4 sources of social support (support for the adolescent from family, support for the adolescent from friends, support for the caregiver from another adult, and support to the family from the health care provider) and adolescents' diabetes outcomes (illness management behavior and health status) using a diverse sample of urban adolescents. One hundred forty-one adolescents with insulin-managed diabetes and their primary caregivers completed questionnaires assessing social support and illness management behavior. Glucose meters were downloaded and hemoglobin A1c assays were obtained. Structural equation modeling was used to test a model social support informed by social ecological theory. The results of the structural equation modeling indicated that support for the caregiver from another adult was directly and positively related to support for the adolescent from family and indirectly related to better illness management. Support for the adolescent from family was directly related to better diabetes management and, through better management, to better diabetes health. Support to the family from the health care provider was not related to support for the adolescent and support to the adolescent from friends was not related to illness management, as hypothesized. This study identifies a novel target for social support intervention to improve adolescents' illness management behavior-the caregivers of adolescents with diabetes. By enhancing the social support caregivers receive from other adults in their lives, caregivers' ability to support their adolescent children with diabetes might also be improved which, in turn, improves adolescents' illness outcomes.

Social support and social norms: do both contribute to predicting leisure-time exercise?

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Okun, Morris A; Ruehlman, Linda; Karoly, Paul; Lutz, Rafer; Fairholme, Chris; Schaub, Rachel

2003-01-01

To clarify the contribution of social support and social norms to exercise behavior. A sample of 363 college students completed a questionnaire that assessed social support and social negativity from friends, descriptive and injunctive social norms related to friends, perceived behavioral control, attitude, intention, and leisure-time exercise. Esteem social support was the strongest predictor of total and strenuous leisure-time exercise (P leisure-time exercise. Social support and social norms contribute independently to our understanding of variation in the frequency of strenuous leisure-time exercise.

Relationship between perceived social support and self-care behavior in type 2 diabetics: A cross-sectional study.

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Mohebi, Siamak; Parham, Mahmoud; Sharifirad, Gholamreza; Gharlipour, Zabihollah; Mohammadbeigi, Abolfazl; Rajati, Fatemeh

2018-01-01

Social support is one of the most effective factors on the diabetic self-care. This study aimed to assess social support and its relationship to self-care in type 2 diabetic patients in Qom, Iran. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 325 diabetics attending the Diabetes Mellitus Association. Patients who meet inclusion and exclusion criteria were selected using random sampling method. Data were collected by the Summary of Diabetes Self-Care Activities and Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, with hemoglobin A 1 C test. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and independent t -test, analysis of variance, Pearson correlation, and linear regression test, using 0.05 as the critical significance level, provided by SPSS software. The mean and standard deviation of self-care and social support scores were 4.31 ± 2.7 and 50.32 ± 11.09, respectively. The mean level of glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA 1 C) of patients was 7.54. There was a significant difference between mean score of self-care behaviors and social support according to gender and marital status ( P social support significantly correlated ( r = 0.489, P > 0.001) and also predictive power of social support was 0.28. Self-care was significantly better in diabetics with HbA 1 C ≤7%. Patients who had higher HbA 1 C felt less, but not significant, social support. This study indicated the relationship between social support and self-care behaviors in type 2 diabetic patients. Interventions that focus on improving the social support and self-care of diabetic control may be more effective in improving glycemic control.

Genes and Social Behavior

OpenAIRE

Robinson, Gene E.; Fernald, Russell D.; Clayton, David F.

2008-01-01

What specific genes and regulatory sequences contribute to the organization and functioning of brain circuits that support social behavior? How does social experience interact with information in the genome to modulate these brain circuits? Here we address these questions by highlighting progress that has been made in identifying and understanding two key “vectors of influence” that link genes, brain, and social behavior: 1) social information alters gene readout in the brain to influence beh...

Social relationships and health: the relative roles of family functioning and social support.

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Franks, P; Campbell, T L; Shields, C G

1992-04-01

The associations between social relationships and health have been examined using two major research traditions. Using a social epidemiological approach, much research has shown the beneficial effect of social supports on health and health behaviors. Family interaction research, which has grown out of a more clinical tradition, has shown the complex effects of family functioning on health, particularly mental health. No studies have examined the relative power of these two approaches in explicating the connections between social relationships and health. We hypothesized that social relationships (social support and family functioning) would exert direct and indirect (through depressive symptoms) effects on health behaviors. We also hypothesized that the effects of social relationships on health would be more powerfully explicated by family functioning than by social support. We mailed a pilot survey to a random sample of patients attending a family practice center, including questions on depressive symptoms, cardiovascular health behaviors, demographics, social support using the ISEL scale, and family functioning using the FEICS scale. FEICS is a self-report questionnaire designed to assess family emotional involvement and criticism, the media elements of family expressed emotion. Eighty-three useable responses were obtained. Regression analyses and structural modelling showed both direct and indirect statistically significant paths from social relationships to health behaviors. Family criticism was directly associated (standardized coefficient = 0.29) with depressive symptoms, and family emotional involvement was directly associated with both depressive symptoms (coefficient = 0.35) and healthy cardiovascular behaviors (coefficient = 0.32). The results support the primacy of family functioning factors in understanding the associations among social relationships, mental health, and health behaviors. The contrasting relationships between emotional involvement and

Very early social support following mild stroke is associated with emotional and behavioral outcomes three months later.

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Villain, Marie; Sibon, Igor; Renou, Pauline; Poli, Mathilde; Swendsen, Joel

2017-01-01

To investigate whether social contact and support received during hospitalization for acute ischemic stroke predict depression and daily life functioning three months later. Prospective observational study using Ecological Momentary Assessments to evaluate the number of social contacts as well as social support received from family, friends and medical staff within 24 hours following admission for stroke. Patients also monitored depression symptoms and behavior in real-time and in daily life contexts three months later. A university hospital acute stroke unit. Thirty-four mild ischemic stroke patients. None. One-day Ecological Momentary Assessments immediately following stroke collected information concerning perceived social support, number of social contacts and depression symptoms. Ecological Momentary Assessments was repeated three months later and addressed depression levels as well as activities of daily living, such as working, cooking, shopping and housework. The number of social interactions received at hospitalization did not predict three-month outcomes. However, a better quality of moral support from friends and family immediately after stroke was associated with decreases in later depression levels ( p = 0.041) and increases in activities of daily living ( p = 0.011). Material support from friends and family was associated with increases in activities of daily living ( p = 0.012). No effect was observed for support received from medical staff. Patient perceptions of better support quality, and not quantity, immediately following mild stroke, are associated with better behavioral and emotional outcomes three months later.

Social Support, Insomnia, and Adherence to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia After Cancer Treatment.

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Kamen, Charles; Garland, Sheila N; Heckler, Charles E; Peoples, Anita R; Kleckner, Ian R; Cole, Calvin L; Perlis, Michael L; Morrow, Gary R; Mustian, Karen M; Roscoe, Joseph A

2017-01-27

While cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) has been shown to be efficacious in treating cancer survivors' insomnia, 30-60% of individuals have difficulty adhering to intervention components. Psychosocial predictors of adherence and response to CBT-I, such as social support, have not been examined in intervention studies for cancer survivors. Data from a randomized placebo-controlled 2 x 2 trial of CBT-I and armodafinil (a wakefulness promoting agent) were used to assess adherence. Ninety-six cancer survivors participated in the trial (mean age 56, 86% female, 68% breast cancer). CBT-I and armodafinil were administered over the course of seven weeks, and participants were assessed at baseline, during intervention, postintervention, and at a three-month follow-up. Social support was assessed using a Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy subscale, insomnia severity was assessed using the Insomnia Severity Index, and adherence was measured based on CBT-I sleep prescriptions. At baseline, social support was negatively correlated with insomnia severity (r = -0.30, p = 0.002) and associations between social support, CBT-I, and insomnia were maintained through the three-month follow-up. Social support was positively associated with adherence to CBT-I during intervention weeks 3, 4, and 5, and with overall intervention adherence. At postintervention, both social support and treatment with CBT-I independently predicted decreased insomnia severity (p adherence and improved sleep independent of CBT-I. Additional research is needed to determine whether social support can be leveraged to improve adherence and response to CBT-I.

Social Anxiety and Social Support in Romantic Relationships.

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Porter, Eliora; Chambless, Dianne L

2017-05-01

Little is known about the quality of socially anxious individuals' romantic relationships. In the present study, we examine associations between social anxiety and social support in such relationships. In Study 1, we collected self-report data on social anxiety symptoms and received, provided, and perceived social support from 343 undergraduates and their romantic partners. One year later couples were contacted to determine whether they were still in this relationship. Results indicated that men's social anxiety at Time 1 predicted higher rates of breakup at Time 2. Men's and women's perceived support, as well as men's provided support, were also significantly predictive of breakup. Social anxiety did not interact with any of the support variables to predict breakup. In Study 2, a subset of undergraduate couples with a partner high (n=27) or low (n=27) in social anxiety completed two 10-minute, lab-based, video-recorded social support tasks. Both partners rated their received or provided social support following the interaction, and trained observers also coded for support behaviors. Results showed that socially anxious individuals received less support from their partners during the interaction according to participant but not observer report. High and lower social anxiety couples did not differ in terms of the target's provision of support. Taken together, results suggest that social anxiety is associated with difficulties even in the context of established romantic relationships. Clinical implications are discussed. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Predictors of Health Promotion Behavior of female Students of Azad Islamic University, Kazerun Branch: Role of Social Support and Health Literacy

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Soheyla Ziaee

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Background and objective: Health promoting behaviors and life style at the young age is regarded as very important issues. The purpose of the present study is to investigate the relationship between social support and health literacy whit health promoting behaviors among female students in Islamic Azad University, in Kazerun, Iran. Methods: In this descriptive-analytic study, 200 female Azad University students were selected as the sample using random cluster sampling. The required data were collected using the Sarason's Social Support Questionnaire, Health Literacy Questionnaire devised by Montazeri et al., and Walker's Promoting Behaviors Questionnaire.  The data were analyzed using SPSS software (version 22, Pearson correlation coefficient and regression analysis. Results: Health promoting behaviors and health literacy scores in students were 74.32 and 76.68, respectively. The average for individuals in the students’ social support network was 3.8 ± 1.9 and the mean score of their satisfaction from their own social network was 4.9 ± 1.5. The results obtained from regression analysis showed that health literacy comprised 22.2% of health promoting behaviors while social support demonstrated 17.8% of these behaviors. Conclusion: Though health literacy and health promoting behaviors have been in a desirable condition for students, it seems necessary to carry out health education programs on the basis of the areas of health promoting behaviors and health literacy components as well as assisting students to improve social networking and to moderate their expectations with respect to this network. Paper Type: Research Article.

Positive Social Support, Negative Social Exchanges, and Suicidal Behavior in College Students

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Hirsch, Jameson K.; Barton, Alison L.

2011-01-01

Objective: Risk for suicide is often higher among college students, compared to same-age noncollegiate peers, and may be exacerbated by quality of social support and interactions. The authors examined the independent contributions of positive social support and negative social exchanges to suicide ideation and attempts in college students.…

The Contributions of Teachers' Emotional Support to Children's Social Behaviors and Self-Regulatory Skills in First Grade

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Merritt, Eileen G.; Wanless, Shannon B.; Rimm-Kaufman, Sara E.; Cameron, Claire; Peugh, James L.

2012-01-01

The present observational study used hierarchical linear modeling to examine predictors of children's social and self-regulatory outcomes in first-grade classrooms. Specifically, goals were the following: (1) to explore relations between emotionally supportive teacher-child interactions and children's social behaviors (aggression with peers,…

Parental Psychological Violence and Adolescent Behavioral Adjustment: The Role of Coping and Social Support

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Gagne, Marie-Helene; Melancon, Claudiane

2013-01-01

The role of coping strategies (approach and avoidance) as a mediating factor between parental psychological violence and adolescent behavior problems, both internalized and externalized, as well as the protective role of social support were examined separately for boys and girls. A group of 278 adolescents (mean age: 14.2) were recruited in three…

The role of social support and social networks in smoking behavior among middle and older aged people in rural areas of South Korea: A cross-sectional study

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Oh Jin-Kyoung

2010-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Although the number of studies on anti-smoking interventions has increased, studies focused on identifying social contextual factors in rural areas are scarce. The purpose of this study was to explore the role of social support and social networks in smoking behavior among middle and older aged people living in rural areas of South Korea. Methods The study employed a cross-sectional design. Participants included 1,057 adults, with a mean age of 60.7 years, residing in rural areas. Information on participants' tobacco use, stress, social support, and social networks was collected using structured questionnaires. The chi-square test, the t-test, ANOVA, and logistic regression were used for data analysis. Results The overall smoking prevalence in the study was 17.4% (men, 38.8%; women, 5.1%. Overall, stress was high among women, and social support was high among men. Smokers had high levels of social support (t = -2.90, p = .0038 and social networks (t = -2.22, p = .0271, as compared to non- and former smokers. Those in the high social support group were likely to be smokers (AOR = 2.21, 95% CI 1.15-4.26. Women with moderate social ties were less likely to smoke (AOR = 0.18, 95% CI 0.05-0.61. Conclusion There was a protective role of a moderate social network level among women, and a high level of social support was associated with smoking behaviors in rural areas. Findings suggest the need for a comprehensive understanding of the functions and characteristics of social contextual factors including social support and social networks in order to conduct more effective anti-smoking interventions in rural areas.

Breaks Are Better: A Tier II Social Behavior Intervention

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Boyd, R. Justin; Anderson, Cynthia M.

2013-01-01

Multi-tiered systems of social behavioral support in schools provide varying levels of intervention matched to student need. Tier I (primary or universal) systems are for all students and are designed to promote pro-social behavior. Tier III (tertiary or intensive) supports are for students who engage in serious challenging behavior that has not…

Appropriate Social Behavior: Teaching Expectations to Young Children

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Carter, Deborah Russell; Pool, Juli Lull

2012-01-01

Young children's challenging behavior can impact all aspects of the classroom environment, including relationships (peer-peer, student-teacher), learning, and safety. Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is a program that focuses on supporting pro-social behaviors and preventing challenging behavior. PBIS begins with building a…

Social support, problem solving, and the longitudinal course of newlywed marriage.

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Sullivan, Kieran T; Pasch, Lauri A; Johnson, Matthew D; Bradbury, Thomas N

2010-04-01

Married couples (N = 172) were observed as newlyweds and observed again 1 year later while engaging in 2 problem-solving and 2 personal support discussions. Microanalytic coding of these conversations was used to examine associations between problem-solving and social support behaviors for 1 year and their relative contributions to 10-year trajectories of self-reported relationship satisfaction and dissolution. Results demonstrated that initially lower levels of positive support behaviors and higher levels of negative support behaviors predicted 1-year increases in negative emotion displayed during problem-solving conversations. Emotions coded from the initial problem-solving conversations did not predict 1-year changes in social support behaviors. Controlling for emotions displayed during problem-solving interactions eliminated or reduced associations between initial social support behaviors and (a) later levels of satisfaction and (b) relationship dissolution. These findings corroborate models that prioritize empathy, validation, and caring as key elements in the development of intimacy (e.g., Reis & Shaver, 1988) and suggest that deficits in these domains foreshadow deterioration in problem solving and conflict management. Implications for integrating support and problem solving in models of relationship change are outlined, as are implications for incorporating social support in education programs for developing relationships.

Social Support and Emocional Stability in Adolescence

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Zuzana Mičková

2014-07-01

research sample was the longiness of their actual partnership (min 1 year, N= 63 - I have actual partnership; N= 57 - I don't have actual partnership. In research we used methods: Own Inventory, MOS Social Support Survey (Kožený & Tišanská, 2002, Personality Inventory (Miglierini, 1987. The Personality Inventory we used because of focusing on the period of adolescence. We used subscales emotional- willing activity and relationships in family. We indicate the most important findings in choosed sample of adolescents. The higher range of perception regards with feeling of confidence. Other findings regard relationship in social support and emotional relationships to parents - between range of anticipation social support and emotional relationships in family exist important correlation, higher perception of social support regard with positive surviving of emotional relationships in family. Gender aspect mention to value of parent's behavior - positive evaluation of parents behavior is a criteria. Important is relationship to parent's behavior. Women - in adolescence are emotional more unstable and men have higher range of uncertainty and lower range of optimism and satisfaction. We found importance in social support regarding with timeliness of emotional partner's bond. The existence of partnership is connected with lower range of emotional steadiness, but higher range of perception social support we found with adolescents with actual partnership. In research was confirmed importance of social support relate to emotional bonds to parents and importance of emotional proximity of partner in period of adolescence.

Transgenerational Social Stress, Immune Factors, Hormones, and Social Behavior

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Christopher Anthony Murgatroyd

2016-01-01

Full Text Available A social signal transduction theory of depression has been proposed that states that exposure to social adversity alters the immune response and these changes mediate symptoms of depression such as anhedonia and impairments in social behavior. The exposure of maternal rats to the chronic social stress (CSS of a male intruder depresses maternal care and impairs social behavior in the F1 and F2 offspring of these dams. The objective of the present study was to characterize basal peripheral levels of several immune factors and related hormone levels in the adult F2 offspring of CSS exposed dams and assess whether changes in these factors are associated with previously reported deficits in allogrooming behavior. CSS decreased acid glycoprotein (α1AGP and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1 in F2 females, and increased granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF in F2 males. There were also sex dependent changes in IL-18, tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases 1 (TIMP-1, and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF. Progesterone was decreased and alpha melanocyte stimulating hormone (α-MSH was increased in F2 males, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF was decreased in F2 females. Changes in α1AGP, GM-CSF, progesterone and α-MSH were correlated with decreased allogrooming in the F2 offspring of stressed dams. These results support the hypothesis that transgenerational social stress affects both the immune system and social behavior, and also support previous studies on the adverse effects of early life stress on immune functioning and stress associated immunological disorders, including the increasing prevalence of asthma. The immune system may represent an important transgenerational etiological factor in disorders which involve social and/or early life stress associated changes in social behavior, such as depression, anxiety, and autism, as well as comorbid immune disorders. Future studies involving immune and

Alone? Perceived social support and chronic interpersonal difficulties in suicidal elders.

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Harrison, Katrin E; Dombrovski, Alexandre Y; Morse, Jennifer Q; Houck, Patricia; Schlernitzauer, Maryann; Reynolds, Charles F; Szanto, Katalin

2010-05-01

Social networks may protect depressed elders against suicidal behavior. However, conflict in important relationships may undermine the sense of social support, potentially negating the protective effects. Thus, we investigated the role of chronic interpersonal difficulties and perceived social support in depressed elders with and without suicidal thoughts and attempts. 106 individuals aged 60 years and older participated in this cross-sectional, case-control study. They were placed in three groups: suicidal depressed, non-suicidal depressed and non-depressed. Following a detailed clinical characterization, we assessed perceived social support (Interpersonal Support Evaluation List), and chronic interpersonal difficulties (Inventory of Interpersonal Problems). Using general linear models, we explored the relationship between suicidal thoughts/attempts, social support, and chronic interpersonal difficulties. We also examined whether lower perceived social support explained the relationship between chronic interpersonal difficulties and suicidal thoughts/attempts. Suicidal depressed elders reported the lowest levels of perceived social support (belonging, tangible support, and self-esteem) and higher levels of chronic interpersonal difficulties (struggle against others and interpersonal hostility), compared to both non-suicidal depressed and non-depressed elders. The relationship between chronic interpersonal difficulties and suicidal behavior was partially explained by low perceived social support. The experience of strong affects, interpersonal struggle, and hostility in relationships may undermine the sense of social support in depressed elders, possibly leading them to contemplate or attempt suicide. Depressed elders with a history of interpersonal difficulties need to be carefully monitored for suicidal behavior.

Can online social support be detrimental in stigmatized chronic diseases? A quadratic model of the effects of informational and emotional support on self-care behavior of HIV patients.

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Wang, Xunyi; Parameswaran, Srikanth; Bagul, Darshan Mahendra; Kishore, Rajiv

2018-04-18

We studied the impact of online social support on patient self-care behavior in an online health community for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) patients. We conceptualized emotional and informational support provided by community members into nuanced sub-dimensions. We explored how the direct and interaction effects of these sub-dimensions impact the self-care behavior of a support seeker. We used data from 330 255 posts in 30 050 threads from POZ, an online health community for HIV patients. Our key variables-self-care behaviori, objective informationj, experiential supportj, and emotional tonej-were operationalized using linguistic analysis with self-generated dictionaries and Python libraries. We tested our hypotheses using Tobit regression. Out of 6 null hypotheses, 5 were rejected. Objective information and emotional tone had an inverted-U relationship with self-care behavior. Experiential information and community involvement were positively related to self-care behavior. Community involvement amplified the inverted-U relationship between emotional tone and self-care behavior. No significant interaction effect was found between experiential support and objective information. Beyond a threshold, both informational and emotional online social support had a deleterious impact on self-care behavior of HIV patients. Our results suggested that caution should be exercised in the use of online health community interventions for HIV patients, and perhaps patients with other stigmatized chronic diseases.

Toward Predicting Social Support Needs in Online Health Social Networks.

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Choi, Min-Je; Kim, Sung-Hee; Lee, Sukwon; Kwon, Bum Chul; Yi, Ji Soo; Choo, Jaegul; Huh, Jina

2017-08-02

While online health social networks (OHSNs) serve as an effective platform for patients to fulfill their various social support needs, predicting the needs of users and providing tailored information remains a challenge. The objective of this study was to discriminate important features for identifying users' social support needs based on knowledge gathered from survey data. This study also provides guidelines for a technical framework, which can be used to predict users' social support needs based on raw data collected from OHSNs. We initially conducted a Web-based survey with 184 OHSN users. From this survey data, we extracted 34 features based on 5 categories: (1) demographics, (2) reading behavior, (3) posting behavior, (4) perceived roles in OHSNs, and (5) values sought in OHSNs. Features from the first 4 categories were used as variables for binary classification. For the prediction outcomes, we used features from the last category: the needs for emotional support, experience-based information, unconventional information, and medical facts. We compared 5 binary classifier algorithms: gradient boosting tree, random forest, decision tree, support vector machines, and logistic regression. We then calculated the scores of the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) to understand the comparative effectiveness of the used features. The best performance was AUC scores of 0.89 for predicting users seeking emotional support, 0.86 for experience-based information, 0.80 for unconventional information, and 0.83 for medical facts. With the gradient boosting tree as our best performing model, we analyzed the strength of individual features in predicting one's social support need. Among other discoveries, we found that users seeking emotional support tend to post more in OHSNs compared with others. We developed an initial framework for automatically predicting social support needs in OHSNs using survey data. Future work should involve nonsurvey

Parental overprotection and interpersonal behavior in generalized social phobia.

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Taylor, Charles T; Alden, Lynn E

2006-03-01

Forty-one people with generalized social phobia (GSP) and 42 community controls completed a measure of social developmental experiences and then participated in a social interaction with an experimental assistant whose behavior was either friendly or ambiguous. Following the interaction, confederates rated participants' behavior and their desire to interact with their partner again. In people with social phobia, but not controls, perceptions of parental overprotection were associated with less responsiveness to partner behavior. Moreover, failure to reciprocate the friendly partner's behavior led to social rejection. The results support the value of incorporating social developmental concepts into cognitive-behavioral models of social phobia and highlight the contribution of social learning experiences to the development of maladaptive interpersonal behavior in these individuals.

The Influence of Social Support on the Prosocial Behavior of College Students: The Mediating Effect Based on Interpersonal Trust

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Guo, Yuan

2017-01-01

A sample of 720 college students from 10 different universities at the Guangzhou Higher Education Mega Center are investigated using the Social Support Scale, the Prosocial Behavior Scale, and the Interpersonal Trust Scale. Data are analyzed using SPSS20.0 and Amos7.0. Results show that the subjective support and support utilization of college…

Social support for healthy behaviors: Scale psychometrics and prediction of weight loss among women in a behavioral program

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Kiernan, Michaela; Moore, Susan D.; Schoffman, Danielle E.; Lee, Katherine; King, Abby C.; Taylor, C. Barr; Kiernan, Nancy Ellen; Perri, Michael G.

2015-01-01

Social support could be a powerful weight-loss treatment moderator or mediator but is rarely assessed. We assessed the psychometric properties, initial levels, and predictive validity of a measure of perceived social support and sabotage from friends and family for healthy eating and physical activity (eight subscales). Overweight/obese women randomized to one of two 6-month, group-based behavioral weight-loss programs (N=267; mean BMI 32.1±3.5; 66.3% White) completed subscales at baseline, and weight loss was assessed at 6 months. Internal consistency, discriminant validity, and content validity were excellent for support subscales and adequate for sabotage subscales; qualitative responses revealed novel deliberate instances not reflected in current sabotage items. Most women (>75%) “never” or “rarely” experienced support from friends or family. Using non-parametric classification methods, we identified two subscales—support from friends for healthy eating and support from family for physical activity—that predicted three clinically meaningful subgroups who ranged in likelihood of losing ≥5% of initial weight at 6 months. Women who “never” experienced family support were least likely to lose weight (45.7% lost weight) whereas women who experienced both frequent friend and family support were more likely to lose weight (71.6% lost weight). Paradoxically, women who “never” experienced friend support were most likely to lose weight (80.0% lost weight), perhaps because the group-based programs provided support lacking from friendships. Psychometrics for support subscales were excellent; initial support was rare; and the differential roles of friend versus family support could inform future targeted weight-loss interventions to subgroups at risk. PMID:21996661

Effects of stress and social support on mothers and premature and full-term infants.

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Crnic, K A; Greenberg, M T; Ragozin, A S; Robinson, N M; Basham, R B

1983-02-01

This study examined the relationships of stress and social support to maternal attitudes and early mother-infant interactive behavior. 52 mother-premature infant pairs and 53 mother-full-term infant pairs were seen for structured home interviews at 1 month, and behavioral interactions at 4 months. Maternal life stress, social support, life satisfaction, and satisfaction with parenting were assessed at the 1-month home visit. Although no group differences were found, both stress and support significantly predicted maternal attitudes at 1 month and interactive behavior at 4 months when data were pooled. Mothers with greater stress were less positive in their attitudes and behavior, while mothers with greater support were significantly more positive. Intimate support proved to have the most general positive effects. Additionally, social support moderated the adverse effects of stress on mother's life satisfaction and on several behavioral variables. Maternal social support was further found to have several significant effects on infant interactive behavior. Results are discussed in terms of the ecological significance of social support to parenting and infants' early development.

Hispanic perspectives on sexual harassment and social support.

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Cortina, Lilia M

2004-05-01

Bridging the social support, sexual victimization, and cultural psychology literatures, this study examines social-support processes in the context of sexual harassment and Hispanic American culture. Surveys were administered to a community sample of Hispanic American working women, 249 of whom described some encounter with sexual harassment at work. Regression results provided mixed backing for hypotheses about support-seeking behavior, which appeared largely dependent on the social power of the harassment perpetrator. Additional findings upheld predictions about support-perception patterns; harassed women perceived more supportive social reactions when they turned to informal networks of friends and family, but responses were less positive when they turned to formal, organizational sources. Finally, as expected, perceived support and acculturation interacted to moderate relations between sexual harassment and job satisfaction. The article concludes with implications for research and interventions related to social support and sexual harassment.

Parenting Beliefs, Parental Stress, and Social Support Relationships

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Respler-Herman, Melissa; Mowder, Barbara A.; Yasik, Anastasia E.; Shamah, Renee

2012-01-01

The present study built on prior research by examining the relationship of parental stress and social support to parenting beliefs and behaviors. A sample of 87 parents provided their views concerning the importance of parenting characteristics as well as their level of parental stress and perceived social support. These parents completed the…

Multiple domains of social support are associated with diabetes self-management among Veterans.

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Gray, Kristen E; Hoerster, Katherine D; Reiber, Gayle E; Bastian, Lori A; Nelson, Karin M

2018-01-01

Objectives To examine, among Veterans, relationships of general social support and diabetes-specific social support for physical activity and healthy eating with diabetes self-management behaviors. Methods Patients from VA Puget Sound, Seattle completed a cross-sectional survey in 2012-2013 ( N = 717). We measured (a) general social support and (b) diabetes-specific social support for healthy eating and physical activity with domains reflecting support person participation, encouragement, and sharing ideas. Among 189 self-reporting diabetes patients, we fit linear and modified Poisson regression models estimating associations of social support with diabetes self-management behaviors: adherence to general and diabetes-specific diets and blood glucose monitoring (days/week); physical activity (social support was not associated with diabetes self-management. For diabetes-specific social support, higher healthy eating support scores across all domains were associated with better adherence to general and diabetes-specific diets. Higher physical activity support scores were positively associated with ≥150 min/week of physical activity only for the participation domain. Discussion Diabetes-specific social support was a stronger and more consistent correlate of improved self-management than general social support, particularly for lifestyle behaviors. Incorporating family/friends into Veterans' diabetes self-management routines may lead to better self-management and improvements in disease control and outcomes.

Bully Prevention in Positive Behavior Support

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Ross, Scott W.; Horner, R. H.

2009-01-01

Bullying behaviors are a growing concern in U.S. schools. We present here a behavioral approach to bully prevention utilizing a schoolwide intervention. Bully prevention in positive behavior support (BP-PBS) teaches students to withhold the social rewards hypothesized to maintain bullying. A single-subject multiple baseline design across 6 students and three elementary schools was implemented in an empirical evaluation of the intervention's effectiveness. Results indicated that implementation...

Is healthy behavior contagious: associations of social norms with physical activity and healthy eating

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McNaughton Sarah A

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Social norms are theoretically hypothesized to influence health-related behaviors such as physical activity and eating behaviors. However, empirical evidence relating social norms to these behaviors, independently of other more commonly-investigated social constructs such as social support, is scarce and findings equivocal, perhaps due to limitations in the ways in which social norms have been conceptualized and assessed. This study investigated associations between clearly-defined social norms and a range of physical activity and eating behaviors amongst women, adjusting for the effects of social support. Methods Self-report survey data about particular physical activity (leisure-time moderate-vigorous activity; volitional walking; cycling for transport and eating behaviors (fast food, soft drink and fruit and vegetable consumption, and social norms and support for these, were provided by 3,610 women aged 18-46 years living in socioeconomically disadvantaged neighborhoods in Victoria, Australia. Results Results of regression analyses showed that social norms for physical activity and eating behaviors predicted these respective behaviors relatively consistently; these associations generally remained significant after adjustment for social support. Conclusions Acknowledging the cross-sectional study design, these data confirm theoretical accounts of the importance of social norms for physical activity and eating behaviors, and suggest that this is independent from social support. Intervention strategies aimed at promoting physical activity and healthy eating could incorporate strategies aimed at modifying social norms relating to these behaviors.

Associations between recent gay-related stressful events, emotional distress, social support and unprotected anal intercourse behavior among Chinese men who have sex with men.

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Yunyong, Liu; Zhe, Wang; Junting, Xu; Yan, Zhou; Xiaoxia, An; Li, Zhao; Yuan, Gu; Chao, Jiang

2016-07-01

This study was designed to assess the levels of and associations between gay-related stressful events, social support, emotional distress and the number of unprotected anal intercourse partners among Chinese men who have sex with men. Using a respondent-driven sampling method, 807 men who have sex with men were recruited in urban areas of northeast China and data were collected via face-to-face interviews. Gay-related stressful events were measured using the Gay-Related Stressful Life Events Scale; levels of depression, anxiety symptoms and social support were measured using the Self-Rating Depression Scale, the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale and the Social Support Rating Scale, respectively. Over a quarter of study participants experienced gay-related stressful events during the preceding 3 months. Their average Self-Rating Depression Scale, Self-Rating Anxiety Scale and Social Support scores differed significantly from the national norm. Gay-related stressful events significantly correlated with anxiety (r = 0.167, p Gay-related stressful events are common and are significantly associated with emotional distress, lack of social support and high-risk sexual behaviors among Chinese men who have sex with men. Multifaceted approaches are warranted to increase social support and reduce intolerance toward homosexual behaviors and to reduce risky sexual behaviors related to the rapid HIV epidemic among men who have sex with men population in China. © The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists 2015.

Preventing Behavioral Disorders via Supporting Social and Emotional Competence at Preschool Age.

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Schell, Annika; Albers, Lucia; von Kries, Rüdiger; Hillenbrand, Clemens; Hennemann, Thomas

2015-09-25

13-18% of all preschool children have severe behavioral problems at least transiently, sometimes with long-term adverse consequences. In this study, the social training program "Lubo aus dem All! - Vorschulalter" (Lubo from Outer Space, Preschool Version) was evaluated in a kindergarten setting. 15 kindergartens were randomly assigned to either an intervention group or a control group, in a 2:1 ratio. The intervention was designed to strengthen emotional knowledge and regulation, the ability to take another person's point of view, communication skills, and social problem solving. The control group continued with conventional kindergarten activities. The primary endpoint was improvement in social-cognitive problem solving strategies, as assessed with the Wally Social Skills and Problem Solving Game (Wally). Secondary endpoints were improvement in prosocial behavior and reduction in problematic behavior, as assessed with the Preschool Social Behavior Questionnaire (PSBQ) and the Caregiver-Teacher Report Form (C-TRF). Data were collected before and after the intervention and also 5 months later. Mixed models were calculated with random effects to take account of the cluster design and for adjustment for confounding variables. 221 children in kindergarten, aged 5-6 years, were included in the study. Randomization was unsuccessful: the children in the intervention group performed markedly worse on the tests carried out before the intervention. Five months after the end of the intervention, the social-cognitive problem solving strategies of the children in the intervention group had improved more than those of the children in the control group: the intergroup difference in improvement was 0.79 standard deviations of the Wally test (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.13-1.46). This effect was just as marked 5 months later (0.63, 95% CI 0.03-1.23). Prosocial behavior, as measured by the PSBQ, also improved more in the intervention group, with an intergroup difference of 0

Self-Efficacy and Social Support Mediate the Relationship between Internal Health Locus of Control and Health Behaviors in College Students

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Marr, Joni; Wilcox, Sara

2015-01-01

Background: Internal health locus of control has been associated with positive health outcomes and behaviors. Understanding the mechanisms of this relationship are key to designing and implementing effective health behavior intervention programs. Purpose: The purpose was to examine whether self-efficacy and social support mediate the relationship…

Influence of Social Support on Treatment of Type II Diabetes in Yazd

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A Zare Shahabadi

2010-08-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Social support can be defined as the interactive process through which emotional and instrumental support is obtained. Social support has been found to be a relevant factor in diabetes self-management. Diabetes refers to complex chronic metabolic conditions that are characterized by elevated levels of blood glucose if untreated. Diabetes is one of the biggest health care problems facing Yazd with regards to prevalence, cost, and the onus it places on patients and its high morbidity rates. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among social factors on the control and treatment of type II diabetes. Methods: The population under study included 4990 diabetes type II patients referring to Yazd Diabetes Research Center and a sample of 256 cases was selected by simple random sampling method through statistical society. This study was based on survey method and the instrument for collecting data was a questionnaire. Results: About 65.4% of the patients were women and 35.6 were men. The mean age of patients was 56 years. Significant correlations were found between perceived social support (r= 0.193, p= 0.001, positive reinforcing behaviors (r= 0.455, p= 0.000, and adherence to self-care activities. Misguided support behaviors did not show a significant correlation with adherence to self-care activities. A total of 25% of variance in self-care behavior can be explained by positive reinforcing behaviors and misguided support behaviors. Conclusion: The findings of this study showed that by increasing the positive reinforcing behaviors and perceived social support and decreasing the misguided support behaviors, the diabetic patients can adhere better to self-care activities.

The Double Meaning of Online Social Space: Three-Way Interactions Among Social Anxiety, Online Social Behavior, and Offline Social Behavior.

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Koo, Hoon Jung; Woo, Sungbum; Yang, Eunjoo; Kwon, Jung Hye

2015-09-01

The present study aimed to investigate how online and offline social behavior interact with each other ultimately to affect the well-being of socially anxious adolescents. Based on previous studies, it was assumed that there might be three-way interactive effects among online social behavior, offline social behavior, and social anxiety regarding the relationship with well-being. To measure social anxiety, online and offline social behavior, and mental well-being, self-report questionnaires such as the Korean-Social Avoidance and Distress Scale, Korean version of the Relational Maintenance Behavior Questionnaire, and Korean version of Mental Health Continuum Short Form were administered to 656 Korean adolescents. Hierarchical regression analysis revealed that the three-way interaction of online social behavior, offline social behavior, and social anxiety was indeed significant. First, online social behavior was associated with lower well-being of adolescents with higher social anxiety under conditions of low engagement in offline social behavior. In contrast, a higher level of online social behavior predicted greater well-being for individuals with high social anxiety under conditions of more engagement in offline social behavior. Second, online social behavior was not significantly related to well-being in youths with low social anxiety under conditions of both high and low engagement in offline social behavior. Implications and limitations of this study were discussed.

The Roles of Social Support and Health Literacy in Self-Management Among Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease.

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Chen, Yu-Chi; Chang, Li-Chun; Liu, Chieh-Yu; Ho, Ya-Fang; Weng, Shuo-Chun; Tsai, Tzu-I

2018-05-01

To investigate the relationships among social support, health literacy, and self-management, and the factors influencing self-management of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Cross-sectional study. A random sample of 410 patients was recruited from nephrology clinics. Data were collected using structured questionnaires and chart reviews from January 2013 to February 2014. Hierarchical regression analysis was used to determine the predictive factors of self-management behaviors and ∆R 2 to determine each variable's explanatory power. Health literacy and social support were positively correlated with self-management behaviors. Furthermore, social support, health literacy, and marital status were significant predictors of self-management behaviors. Social support had a relatively greater explanatory power for self-management behaviors than did health literacy. Particularly, healthcare provider support had the greatest influence on patients' self-management behaviors. Health literacy and social support play independent positive roles in self-management behaviors of patients with CKD, with social support having a particularly dominant role. Further research using a systems approach to improving self-management behaviors is necessary to clarify the role of social support. Health literacy and social support are independently and positively related to self-management. Social support, which is a system-level factor, is a relatively stronger and crucial predictor than is health literacy. Nurses have to refine self-management programs to focus on families and adopt a systems approach to help CKD patients improve their self-management behaviors. © 2018 Sigma Theta Tau International.

Pregnant and Parenting Adolescents: A Study of Ethnic Identity, Emotional and Behavioral Functioning, Child Characteristics, and Social Support

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Sieger, Karin; Renk, Kimberly

2007-01-01

This study examined relationships among the ethnic identity, behavior problems, self-esteem, and social support of 166 ethnically diverse pregnant and parenting adolescents, the majority of whom were African American and Hispanic American, and their infants. Results indicated that pregnant and parenting adolescent females were experiencing…

Teachers' Emotional and Behavioral Support and Preschoolers' Self-Regulation: Relations with Social and Emotional Skills during Play

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Broekhuizen, Martine L.; Slot, Pauline L.; van Aken, Marcel A. G.; Dubas, Judith S.

2017-01-01

Research Findings: Drawing from a Dutch sample of 113 Dutch children (M age = 37 months, SD = 3.5) from 37 early care and education classrooms (19 child care centers and 18 preschools), this study examined whether the relation between classroom emotional and behavioral support and children's observed social integration and positive mood in a play…

Adolescent Resilience in Northern Uganda: The Role of Social Support and Prosocial Behavior in Reducing Mental Health Problems

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Haroz, Emily E.; Murray, Laura K.; Bolton, Paul; Betancourt, Theresa; Bass, Judith K.

2013-01-01

We investigated relations between prosocial behavior, perceived social support, and improvement in depression and anxiety symptoms over 6 months among 102 Acholi adolescent (14-17 years, 58% female adolescents) survivors of war and displacement in Northern Uganda. Adolescents were assessed using a locally developed screener. Regression analyses…

Investigating the effects of behavioral change, social support, and self-efficacy in physical activity in a collectivistic culture: Application of Stages of Motivational Readiness for Change in Korean young adults.

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Lee, Dohyun; Young, Sarah J

2018-06-01

The study investigated the roles of social support, self-efficacy, and behavioral change in physical activity (PA) in the Korean culture. The subjects were 164 Korean college students. In November 2016, the study participants completed an online survey asking about PA behavior, PA Self-Efficacy, PA Stages of Change (stages of behavioral change in PA), and Social Support for PA. The collected data were statistically analyzed through structural equation modeling. In the results, PA Stages of Change had a direct effect ( β  = 0.57, p  Change as PA Self-Efficacy had a direct effect ( β  = 0.50, p  Change. However, Social Support for PA did not show an effect on other factors. Additionally, Social Support for PA had a correlation of r  = 0.45 ( p  Change is a significant PA predictor. Moreover, high PA Self-Efficacy indirectly helps Korean young adults to be more physically active by fostering advancement on the stages of behavioral change in PA. In contrast, Social Support for PA does not have a significant association with PA or PA Stages of Change. This non-significance of Social Support for PA can be explained with Korea's collectivistic culture. Furthermore, there is a possibility that Social Support for PA can positively affect PA by interacting with PA Self-Efficacy.

Social memory, social stress, and economic behaviors

OpenAIRE

Taiki Takahashi

2005-01-01

Social memory plays a pivotal role in social behaviors, from mating behaviors to cooperative behaviors based on reciprocal altruism. More specifically, social/person recognition memory is supposed, by behavioral-economic and game-theoretic analysis, to be required for tit- for-tat like cooperative behaviors to evolve under the N-person iterated prisoner fs dilemma game condition. Meanwhile, humans are known to show a social stress response during face-to-face social interactions, which might ...

Association Between Parental Social Interaction and Behavior Problems in Offspring: a Population-Based Study in Japan.

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Ochi, Manami; Fujiwara, Takeo

2016-08-01

Research in parental social support has chiefly examined received social support. Studies have suggested that provided social support may also be protective for child mental health problems. We aim to investigate the association between parental social interaction (both received and provided social support) and offspring behavior problems. We analyzed the data of 982 households, including 1538 children aged 4 to 16 years, from the Japanese Study of Stratification, Health, Income, and Neighborhood (J-SHINE) survey conducted over 2010-2011. We used a 5-point Likert scale to assess social interaction including parental emotional and instrumental support received from and provided to the spouse, other co-residing family members, non-co-residing family members or relatives, neighbors, and friends. Behavior problems in offspring were assessed using parental responses to the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Associations between parental social interaction and behavior problems were analyzed using ordered logistic regression. We found that higher maternal social interaction is significantly associated with lower odds of both difficult and prosocial behavior problems, while the same associations were not found for paternal social interaction. Further, maternal provided social support showed an independent negative association with prosocial behavior problems in offspring, even when adjusted for received maternal social support and paternal social interaction. This study showed that maternal social interaction, but not paternal social interaction, might have a protective effect on offspring behavior problems. Further study is required to investigate the effect of the intervention to increase social participation among mothers whose children have behavior problems.

Association between suicidal ideation and behavior, and depression, anxiety, and perceived social support in cancer patients

OpenAIRE

Şengül, Melike Ceyhan Balcı; Kaya, Vildan; Şen, Cenk Ahmet; Kaya, Kemal

2014-01-01

Background The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between suicidal behavior and associated factors such as depression, anxiety, and perceived social support level in cancer patients. Material/Methods The study group included 102 patients who were under treatment in the oncology department and the control group included 100 individuals with similar sociodemographic features. A sociodemographic information form, Beck depression inventory, Beck anxiety inventory, suicidal behavi...

Social Support for Diabetes Self-Management via eHealth Interventions.

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Vorderstrasse, Allison; Lewinski, Allison; Melkus, Gail D'Eramo; Johnson, Constance

2016-07-01

eHealth interventions have been increasingly used to provide social support for self-management of type 2 diabetes. In this review, we discuss social support interventions, types of support provided, sources or providers of support, outcomes of the support interventions (clinical, behavioral, psychosocial), and logistical and clinical considerations for support interventions using eHealth technologies. Many types of eHealth interventions demonstrated improvements in self-management behaviors, psychosocial outcomes, and clinical measures, particularly HbA1c. Important factors to consider in clinical application of eHealth support interventions include participant preferences, usability of eHealth technology, and availability of personnel to orient or assist participants. Overall, eHealth is a promising adjunct to clinical care as it addresses the need for ongoing support in chronic disease management.

The coevolution of recognition and social behavior.

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Smead, Rory; Forber, Patrick

2016-05-26

Recognition of behavioral types can facilitate the evolution of cooperation by enabling altruistic behavior to be directed at other cooperators and withheld from defectors. While much is known about the tendency for recognition to promote cooperation, relatively little is known about whether such a capacity can coevolve with the social behavior it supports. Here we use evolutionary game theory and multi-population dynamics to model the coevolution of social behavior and recognition. We show that conditional harming behavior enables the evolution and stability of social recognition, whereas conditional helping leads to a deterioration of recognition ability. Expanding the model to include a complex game where both helping and harming interactions are possible, we find that conditional harming behavior can stabilize recognition, and thereby lead to the evolution of conditional helping. Our model identifies a novel hypothesis for the evolution of cooperation: conditional harm may have coevolved with recognition first, thereby helping to establish the mechanisms necessary for the evolution of cooperation.

Changing norms, strategies, and systems to support behavioral health and social justice: A call to action and introduction to the special section.

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McLeigh, Jill D; Kilmer, Ryan P

2017-01-01

This editorial introduces this special section of the American Journal of Orthopsychiatry . The Global Alliance for Behavioral Health and Social Justice (formerly the American Orthopsychiatric Association) has developed the theme for its track at the 2016 Annual Research and Policy Conference on Child, Adolescent, and Young Adult Behavioral Health. The Global Alliance, the parent organization of the American Journal of Orthopsychiatry , has long sought to address prevailing social conditions by treating them as problems to be solved through multilevel, contextually grounded social interventions. Indeed, throughout the organization's history, it has advocated for focusing on the effects of social determinants of health (e.g., racism, violence, poverty, oppression, war) on behavioral health and for doing so across contexts, such as the family, community, and broader social environment. In keeping with the organization's history and the current social context, the theme for the Global Alliance's track was "Changing norms, strategies, and systems to support behavioral health and social justice." This special section includes articles that build on four of the presentations and two award addresses delivered as part of the Global Alliance's track. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

[Social networks in drinking behaviors among Japanese: support network, drinking network, and intervening network].

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Yoshihara, Chika; Shimizu, Shinji

2005-10-01

The national representative sample was analyzed to examine the relationship between respondents' drinking practice and the social network which was constructed of three different types of network: support network, drinking network, and intervening network. Non-parametric statistical analysis was conducted with chi square method and ANOVA analysis, due to the risk of small samples in some basic tabulation cells. The main results are as follows: (1) In the support network of workplace associates, moderate drinkers enjoyed much more sociable support care than both nondrinkers and hard drinkers, which might suggest a similar effect as the French paradox. Meanwhile in the familial and kinship network, the more intervening care support was provided, the harder respondents' drinking practice. (2) The drinking network among Japanese people for both sexes is likely to be convergent upon certain types of network categories and not decentralized in various categories. This might reflect of the drinking culture of Japan, which permits people to drink everyday as a practice, especially male drinkers. Subsequently, solitary drinking is not optional for female drinkers. (3) Intervening network analysis showed that the harder the respondents' drinking practices, the more frequently their drinking behaviors were checked in almost all the categories of network. A rather complicated gender double-standard was found in the network of hard drinkers with their friends, particularly for female drinkers. Medical professionals played a similar intervening role for men as family and kinship networks but to a less degree than friends for females. The social network is considerably associated with respondents' drinking, providing both sociability for moderate drinkers and intervention for hard drinkers, depending on network categories. To minimize the risk of hard drinking and advance self-healthy drinking there should be more research development on drinking practice and the social network.

Cancer patients and the provision of informational social support.

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Robinson, James D; Tian, Yan

2009-07-01

Research into the impact of social support on health-care patients has focused on the benefits of receiving social support. Although recipients benefit from social support, there are also potential benefits to the providers of social support that have gone relatively unexplored. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the relationship between the reception and provision of informational social support by cancer patients. Based on the work of Gouldner (1960), this investigation attempts to examine the role reciprocity plays within the social support process. The norm of reciprocity is conceptualized as a generalized moral belief rather than as a simple pattern of exchange between caregivers and care receivers. Use of reciprocity as a generalized moral belief instead of a pattern of behavioral exchange between providers and recipients of social support allows a more thorough integration theoretically and more methodical examination of the role the relationship between providers and recipients plays in this process. Specifically, this investigation employs the notion of optimal matching as part of the mechanism underlying the satisfactions derived from informational social support. The results of the logistic regression analyses suggest that reciprocity is a viable explanation of the mechanism underlying the desire to provide social support to others among cancer patients and among adults who have never been diagnosed with cancer. This relationship between the reception and the provision of informational social support remains even after controlling for age, education, gender, race, social integration, and cancer diagnosis. Implications for the social support literature are discussed.

The Mediating Role of Self-Esteem: The Effects of Social Support and Subjective Well-Being on Adolescents' Risky Behaviors

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Savi Çakar, Firdevs; Tagay, Özlem

2017-01-01

This research is a descriptive study based on the testing of a structural model developed by considering the effects of perceived social support and subjective well-being on adolescents' risky behaviors, and the possible mediating role of self-esteem. Participants consisted of 676 high school students attending formal education institutions,…

Relationship between Primary School Teachers' Perceived Social Support and Organizational Trust Level

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Tasdan, Murat; Yalcin, Tugba

2010-01-01

Perceived social support and organizational trust have gained importance in organizational life along with the human relationship among organizations. While social support concept has been accepted as the support obtained from individual's surroundings, organizational trust is defined as the result of consistent behaviors based on mutual respect…

The Effect of Educational Intervention Based on Health Belief Model and Social Support on Promoting Skin Cancer Preventive Behaviors in a Sample of Iranian Farmers.

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Jeihooni, Ali Khani; Rakhshani, Tayebeh

2018-01-08

Skin cancer is one of the most common cancers in Iran. Farmers are exposed to the sun's ultraviolet radiation due to their job and are susceptible to skin cancer. The aim of this study is to survey the effect of educational intervention based on health belief model and social support on promoting skin cancer preventive behaviors in farmers of Fasa City, Fars province, Iran. In this quasi-experimental study, 200 farmers (100 in experimental group and 100 in control group) in Fasa City, Fars, Iran, were selected in 2017. The educational intervention for the experimental group consisted of eight training sessions (introduction to skin cancer, risk factors, complications, benefits and barriers to proper use of sunscreen, UV sunglasses and physical protection, self-efficacy in applying preventive behaviors, role of social support). A questionnaire consisting of demographic information, knowledge, HBM constructs (perceived susceptibility, severity, benefits, barriers, self-efficacy and cues to action), and social support was used to measure skin cancer preventive behaviors before, 3 months after the intervention, and 6 months later. Data were analyzed using SPSS-22 via chi-squared, independent samples t test, Mann-Whitney, and repeated measures ANOVA at a significance level of 0.5. The mean age of the farmers was 42.21 ± 10.52 years in the experimental group and 44.28 ± 10.16 years in the control group. Three months after the intervention and 6 months after the intervention, the experimental group showed a significant increase in the knowledge, perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, perceived benefits, self-efficacy, cues to action, social support, and skin cancer preventive behaviors compared to the control group. This study showed the effectiveness of the intervention based on the HBM constructs and social support in adoption of skin cancer preventive behaviors in 3 and 6 months post intervention in farmers. Hence, these models can act as a

Parents' Perceptions of Their Children's Social Behavior: The Social Validity of Social Stories[TM] and Comic Strip Conversations

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Hutchins, Tiffany L.; Prelock, Patricia A.

2013-01-01

This article describes a family-centered collaborative approach to the development and socially valid assessment of Social Stories[TM] and comic strip conversations (CSCs) for supporting the social behaviors in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Seventeen children with ASD (ages 4-12 years) participated in either an immediate or a…

Perceived neighborhood social resources as determinants of prosocial behavior in early adolescence.

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Lenzi, Michela; Vieno, Alessio; Perkins, Douglas D; Pastore, Massimiliano; Santinello, Massimo; Mazzardis, Sonia

2012-09-01

The present study aims to develop an integrative model that links neighborhood behavioral opportunities and social resources (neighborhood cohesion, neighborhood friendship and neighborhood attachment) to prosocial (sharing, helping, empathic) behavior in early adolescence, taking into account the potential mediating role of perceived support of friends. Path analysis was used to test the proposed theoretical model in a sample of 1,145 Italian early adolescents (6th through 8th graders). More perceived opportunities and social resources in the neighborhood are related to higher levels of adolescent prosocial behavior, and this relationship is partially mediated by perceived social support from friends. The results offer promising implications for future research and intervention programs that aim to modify social systems to improve child and adolescent social competencies.

ORIGINAL ARTICLE Motivation, Social Support, Alienation from the ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The study examined tenth grade students' motivation, social support, alienation from school and ... called because it is external to the learning activity itself .... on mathematics achievement (Bandura,. 1997). ...... a Unifying Theory of Behavioral.

Cytokine variations and mood disorders: influence of social stressors and social support

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marie-Claude eAudet

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Stressful events have been implicated in the evolution of mood disorders. In addition to brain neurotransmitters and growth factors, the view has been offered that these disorders might be provoked by the activation of the inflammatory immune system as well as by de novo changes of inflammatory cytokines within the brain. The present review describes the impact of social stressors in animals and in humans on behavioral changes reminiscent of depressive states as well as on cytokine functioning. Social stressors increase pro-inflammatory cytokines in circulation as well as in brain regions that have been associated with depression, varying with the animal’s social status and/or behavioral methods used to contend with social challenges. Likewise, in humans, social stressors that favor the development of depression are accompanied by elevated circulating cytokine levels and conversely, conditions that limit the cytokine elevations correlated with symptoms attenuation or reversal. The implications of these findings are discussed in relation to the potentially powerful effects of social support, social identity, and connectedness in maintaining well-being and in diminishing symptoms of depression.

Social network, social support, and risk of incident stroke: Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study.

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Nagayoshi, Mako; Everson-Rose, Susan A; Iso, Hiroyasu; Mosley, Thomas H; Rose, Kathryn M; Lutsey, Pamela L

2014-10-01

Having a small social network and lack of social support have been associated with incident coronary heart disease; however, epidemiological evidence for incident stroke is limited. We assessed the longitudinal association of a small social network and lack of social support with risk of incident stroke and evaluated whether the association was partly mediated by vital exhaustion and inflammation. The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study measured social network and social support in 13 686 men and women (mean, 57 years; 56% women; 24% black; 76% white) without a history of stroke. Social network was assessed by the 10-item Lubben Social Network Scale and social support by a 16-item Interpersonal Support Evaluation List-Short Form. During a median follow-up of 18.6 years, 905 incident strokes occurred. Relative to participants with a large social network, those with a small social network had a higher risk of stroke (hazard ratio [95% confidence interval], 1.44 [1.02-2.04]) after adjustment for demographics, socioeconomic variables, marital status, behavioral risk factors, and major stroke risk factors. Vital exhaustion, but not inflammation, partly mediated the association between a small social network and incident stroke. Social support was unrelated to incident stroke. In this sample of US community-dwelling men and women, having a small social network was associated with excess risk of incident stroke. As with other cardiovascular conditions, having a small social network may be associated with a modestly increased risk of incident stroke. © 2014 American Heart Association, Inc.

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Suicidal Behavior: Indirect Effects of Impaired Social Functioning.

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Dutton, Courtney E; Rojas, Sasha M; Badour, Christal L; Wanklyn, Sonya G; Feldner, Matthew T

2016-01-01

Social functioning is negatively impacted by the presence of PTSD, while increasing risk of suicidal behavior among individuals with PTSD. However, little research has examined the specific role of social functioning in the association between PTSD and suicidal behavior. Parallel multiple indirect effects analyses were performed to understand the unique indirect effects of four aspects of social functioning. Indirect effects of PTSD on suicidal ideation were significant through three pathways: interpersonal conflict, perceived family support, and interpersonal apprehension. Perceived family support was the only indirect pathway significantly associated with suicide attempt. Findings suggest that social functioning should be assessed and potentially targeted during treatment to help modify the risk for suicidal behavior among individuals with PTSD.

E-mail support as an adjunct to cognitive-behavioral group therapy for social anxiety disorder: Impact on dropout and outcome

OpenAIRE

Delsignore, Aba; Rufer, Michael; Emmerich, Juliane; Weidt, Steffi; Brühl, Annette Beatrix; Moergeli, Hanspeter

2016-01-01

The present study evaluates the impact of semi-individualized e-mail support as an adjunct to cognitive behavioral group therapy (CBGT) for social anxiety disorder (SAD) on dropout and outcome. The effectiveness of additional semi-individualized e-mail support was evaluated for the whole sample and for a subsample of patients at risk of dropping out of therapy. A total of 91 patients with SAD were allocated either to the intervention condition (CBGT with e-mail support), or to the control con...

The role of religiosity, social support, and stress-related growth in protecting against HIV risk among transgender women.

Science.gov (United States)

Golub, Sarit A; Walker, Ja'nina J; Longmire-Avital, Buffie; Bimbi, David S; Parsons, Jeffrey T

2010-11-01

Transgender women completed questionnaires of religiosity, social support, stigma, stress-related growth, and sexual risk behavior. In a multivariate model, both social support and religious stress-related growth were significant negative predictors of unprotected anal sex, but religious behaviors and beliefs emerged as a significant positive predictor. The interaction between religious behaviors and beliefs and social support was also significant, and post-hoc analyses indicated that high-risk sex was least likely among individuals with high-levels of social support but low levels of religious behaviors and beliefs. These data have important implications for understanding factors that might protect against HIV risk for transgender women.

Classification of group behaviors in social media via social behavior grammars

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Levchuk, Georgiy; Getoor, Lise; Smith, Marc

2014-06-01

The increasing use of online collaboration and information sharing in the last decade has resulted in explosion of criminal and anti-social activities in online communities. Detection of such behaviors are of interest to commercial enterprises who want to guard themselves from cyber criminals, and the military intelligence analysts who desire to detect and counteract cyberwars waged by adversarial states and organizations. The most challenging behaviors to detect are those involving multiple individuals who share actions and roles in the hostile activities and individually appear benign. To detect these behaviors, the theories of group behaviors and interactions must be developed. In this paper we describe our exploration of the data from collaborative social platform to categorize the behaviors of multiple individuals. We applied graph matching algorithms to explore consistent social interactions. Our research led us to a conclusion that complex collaborative behaviors can be modeled and detected using a concept of group behavior grammars, in a manner analogous to natural language processing. These grammars capture constraints on how people take on roles in virtual environments, form groups, and interact over time, providing the building blocks for scalable and accurate multi-entity interaction analysis and social behavior hypothesis testing.

Effects of social support and conflict on parenting among homeless mothers.

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Marra, Jaime V; McCarthy, Elissa; Lin, Hsiu-Ju; Ford, Julian; Rodis, Eleni; Frisman, Linda K

2009-07-01

Research has shown that having a supportive social network is generally beneficial for individuals, particularly those who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. However, conflict within these networks may diminish the positive effects of social support on well-being, and these effects may be felt acutely within a vulnerable population with multiple needs. This study examined the impact of conflict and social support on parenting behaviors in a sample of mothers who are homeless and were involved in a study of case management interventions of varying intensity. We found that women who reported high emotional and instrumental social support self-reported greater improvements in parenting consistency over time than those who reported lower levels of support. However, three-way interactions showed that conflict in support networks was a risk factor for harsh parenting practices among participants who reported lower levels of instrumental social support. Results suggest that social support may enhance homeless mothers' ability to provide consistent parenting, but that these benefits may be undermined if conflict occurs in combination with limited levels of instrumental social support.

Social Environmental Correlates of Health Behaviors in a Faith-Based Policy and Environmental Change Intervention.

Science.gov (United States)

Hermstad, April; Honeycutt, Sally; Flemming, Shauna StClair; Carvalho, Michelle L; Hodge, Tarccara; Escoffery, Cam; Kegler, Michelle C; Arriola, Kimberly R Jacob

2018-03-01

Diet and physical activity are behavioral risk factors for many chronic diseases, which are among the most common health conditions in the United States. Yet most Americans fall short of meeting established dietary and physical activity guidelines. Faith-based organizations as settings for health promotion interventions can affect members at multiple levels of the social ecological model. The present study investigated whether change in the church social environment was associated with healthier behavior at church and in general at 1-year follow-up. Six churches received mini-grants and technical assistance for 1 year to support policy and environmental changes for healthy eating (HE) and physical activity (PA). Socioenvironmental (social support and social norms) and behavioral (HE and PA at church and in general) outcomes were derived from baseline and 1-year follow-up church member surveys ( n = 258). Three of six churches demonstrated significant improvements in all three socioenvironmental aspects of HE. Two of five churches exhibited significant socioenvironmental improvements for PA at follow-up. Church social environmental changes were related to health behaviors at church and in general ( p Change in social support for HE, social support for PA, and social norms for PA were each associated with three church-based and general behavioral outcomes. Social norms for healthy eating were related to two general behavior outcomes and social norms for unhealthy eating to one general behavioral outcome. Study findings demonstrate that socioenvironmental characteristics are essential to multilevel interventions and merit consideration in designing policy and environmental change interventions.

The Online Big Blue Test for Promoting Exercise: Health, Self-Efficacy, and Social Support.

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Gómez-Zúñiga, Beni; Pousada, Modesta; Hernandez, Manny M; Colberg, Sheri; Gabarrón, Elia; Armayones, Manuel

2015-10-01

Recent articles have documented the influence of self-efficacy and social support on exercising. Simultaneously, insulin use is also related to the perception of self-efficacy and social support in patients with diabetes. We combine these two ideas through the Big Blue Test experience in a social networking site and propose to analyze whether a change in blood sugar levels after completion of the Big Blue Test and insulin use are related to the perception of self-efficacy and social support in patients with diabetes. To undergo the Big Blue Test, 3,926 participants voluntarily joined the Diabetes Hands Foundation. Responses were analyzed using descriptive analysis. The participants who reduced their blood glucose after exercise the least were those with lower self-efficacy and also with lower perceived social support. There seems to have been no relationship between changes in blood sugar level and the explicit intention of doing exercise in the future. Insulin-dependent participants demonstrated a lower perception of self-efficacy and social support than non-insulin-dependent participants. Change in blood glucose level or being insulin-dependent or not do not explain completely a health behavior such as exercise. Hence, self-efficacy and social support have an impact on behavioral change such as exercise to become a habit in people with diabetes, and this experience through a social networking site is an important tool for this behavioral change. For exercise to become a habit in people with diabetes, it is necessary to consider not only the crucial physiological variables, but also those psychological variables that clearly have an impact on behavioral change.

A meta-analysis of work-family conflict and social support.

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French, Kimberly A; Dumani, Soner; Allen, Tammy D; Shockley, Kristen M

2018-03-01

The relationship between social support and work-family conflict is well-established, but the notion that different forms, sources, and types of social support as well as contextual factors can alter this relationship has been relatively neglected. To address this limitation, the current study provides the most comprehensive and in-depth examination of the relationship between social support and work-family conflict to date. We conduct a meta-analysis based on 1021 effect sizes and 46 countries to dissect the social support and work-family conflict relationship. Using social support theory as a theoretical framework, we challenge the assumption that social support measures are interchangeable by comparing work/family support relationships with work-family conflict across different support forms (behavior, perceptions), sources (e.g., supervisor, coworker, spouse), types (instrumental, emotional), and national contexts (cultural values, economic factors). National context hypotheses use a strong inferences paradigm in which utility and value congruence theoretical perspectives are pitted against one another. Significant results concerning support source are in line with social support theory, indicating that broad sources of support are more strongly related to work-family conflict than are specific sources of support. In line with utility perspective from social support theory, culture and economic national context significantly moderate some of the relationships between work/family support and work interference with family, indicating that social support is most beneficial in contexts in which it is needed or perceived as useful. The results suggest that organizational support may be the most important source of support overall. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Exploration of Support Behavior in Counseling Groups with Counseling Trainees

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Harel, Yoni; Shechtman, Zipora; Cutrona, Carolyn

2012-01-01

The study explores the types of support expressed in counseling groups attended by trainee counselors. Support is a crucial factor in human life in general, and in groups in particular, yet little is known about the type of support presented in counseling groups. Type of support was categorized by means of the Social Support Behavior Code (SSBC;…

The Behavioral and Social Sciences: Contributions and Opportunities in Academic Medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Patrick O; Grigsby, R Kevin

2017-06-01

The Association of American Medical Colleges plays a leading role in supporting the expansion and evolution of academic medicine and medical science in North America, which are undergoing high-velocity change. Behavioral and social science concepts have great practical value when applied to the leadership practices and administrative structures that guide and support the rapid evolution of academic medicine and medical sciences. The authors are two behavioral and social science professionals who serve as academic administrators in academic medical centers. They outline their career development and describe the many ways activities have been shaped by their work with the Association of American Medical Colleges. Behavioral and social science professionals are encouraged to become change agents in the ongoing transformation of academic medicine.

Social support from teachers mediates physical activity behavior change in children participating in the Fit-4-Fun intervention.

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Eather, Narelle; Morgan, Philip J; Lubans, David R

2013-05-28

Few studies have examined the mediators of behavior change in successful school-based physical activity interventions. The aim of this study was to explore potential mediators of physical activity in the Fit-4-Fun program for primary school children. Group randomized controlled trial. Four primary schools were recruited in April, 2011 and randomized by school into intervention or control conditions. Participants included 213 children (mean age = 10.7 years ± 0.6; 52.2% female) with the treatment group (n = 118) completing the 8-week multi-component Fit-4-Fun program. Participants were assessed at baseline, 3- and 6-months. Physical activity was measured using Yamax SW700 pedometers (mean steps/day) and questionnaires were used to assess constructs from Social Cognitive Theory and Competence Motivation Theory. Hypothesized mediators measured included social support from peers, parents and teachers; physical activity self-efficacy (barrier and task); enjoyment; and perceived school physical environment. Mediation was assessed using Preacher and Hayes' multiple mediation regression SPSS macro. Action theory (A), conceptual theory (B) and the significance of the product of coefficients (AB) are reported. The intervention had a significant effect on physical activity (pFun program successfully targeted social support for physical activity provided by classroom teachers which contributed to improved physical activity in children. These results demonstrate that classroom teachers play a key role in influencing physical activity behavior outcomes in children.Trial Registration No: ACTRN12611000976987.

How Persuasive are Serious Games, Social Media and mHealth Technologies for Vulnerable Young Adults? Design Factors for Health Behavior and Lifestyle Change Support: Sexual Health Case. Proceedings Third International Workshop on Behavior Change Support Systems (BCSS 2015)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kulyk, Olga Anatoliyivna; van Gemert-Pijnen, Julia E.W.C.; den Daas, Chantal; David, Silke; Kelders, Saskia; Kulyk, Olga; van Gemert-Pijnen, Lisette; Oinas-Kukkonen, Harri

2015-01-01

Modern eHealth technologies, such as serious games, social media and mobile applications addressing health behavior support are evolving rapidly. High-risk young adults with low educational background and of foreign origin could especially benefit from personalized health technologies, designed for

Drinking and Driving among Recent Latino Immigrants: The Impact of Neighborhoods and Social Support

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mariana Sanchez

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Latinos are disproportionately impacted by drinking and driving arrests and alcohol-related fatal crashes. Why, and how, these disparities occur remains unclear. The neighborhood environments that recent Latino immigrants encounter in their host communities can potentially influence health behaviors over time, including the propensity to engage in drinking and driving. This cross-sectional study utilizes a sample of 467 documented and undocumented adult recent Latino immigrants in the United States to answer the following research questions: (a How do neighborhood-level factors, combined with social support, impact drinking and driving risk behaviors?; and (b Does acculturative stress moderate the effects of those associations? Results indicate neighborhood-level factors (informal social control and social capital have protective effects against drinking and driving risk behaviors via the mediating mechanism of social support. Acculturative stress moderated associations between neighborhood informal social control and social support, whereby the protective effects of informal social control on social support were not present for those immigrants with higher levels of acculturative stress. Our findings contribute to the limited knowledge of drinking and driving among Latino immigrants early in the immigration process and suggest that, in the process of developing prevention programs tailored to Latino immigrants, greater attention must be paid to neighborhood-level factors.

Drinking and Driving among Recent Latino Immigrants: The Impact of Neighborhoods and Social Support

Science.gov (United States)

Sanchez, Mariana; Romano, Eduardo; Dawson, Christyl; Huang, Hui; Sneij, Alicia; Cyrus, Elena; Rojas, Patria; Cano, Miguel Ángel; Brook, Judith; De La Rosa, Mario

2016-01-01

Latinos are disproportionately impacted by drinking and driving arrests and alcohol-related fatal crashes. Why, and how, these disparities occur remains unclear. The neighborhood environments that recent Latino immigrants encounter in their host communities can potentially influence health behaviors over time, including the propensity to engage in drinking and driving. This cross-sectional study utilizes a sample of 467 documented and undocumented adult recent Latino immigrants in the United States to answer the following research questions: (a) How do neighborhood-level factors, combined with social support, impact drinking and driving risk behaviors?; and (b) Does acculturative stress moderate the effects of those associations? Results indicate neighborhood-level factors (informal social control and social capital) have protective effects against drinking and driving risk behaviors via the mediating mechanism of social support. Acculturative stress moderated associations between neighborhood informal social control and social support, whereby the protective effects of informal social control on social support were not present for those immigrants with higher levels of acculturative stress. Our findings contribute to the limited knowledge of drinking and driving among Latino immigrants early in the immigration process and suggest that, in the process of developing prevention programs tailored to Latino immigrants, greater attention must be paid to neighborhood-level factors. PMID:27801856

Social Support, Trust in Health Information, and Health Information-Seeking Behaviors (HISBs): A Study Using the 2012 Annenberg National Health Communication Survey (ANHCS).

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Qinghua; Chen, Yixin; Wendorf Muhamad, Jessica

2017-09-01

We proposed a conceptual model to predict health information-seeking behaviors (HISBs) from three different sources (family, the Internet, doctors). To test the model, a structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis was conducted using data from the 2012 Annenberg National Health Communication Survey (ANHCS) (N = 3,285). Findings suggest higher social support from family predicts higher trust in health information from family members (abbreviated as trust in this article). Trust is positively related to HISBs from all three sources, with the path linking trust to HISB from family being the strongest. The effect of social support on HISB from family is partially mediated by trust, while effect of social support on HISBs from the Internet/doctors is fully mediated by trust. Implications of the study are discussed.

Supporting Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Understanding and Coping with Complex Social Emotional Issues

Science.gov (United States)

Ahlers, Kaitlyn P.; Gabrielsen, Terisa P.; Lewis, Danielle; Brady, Anna M.; Litchford, April

2017-01-01

Core deficits in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) center around social communication and behavior. For those with ASD, these deficits complicate the task of learning how to cope with and manage complex social emotional issues. Although individuals with ASD may receive sufficient academic and basic behavioral support in school settings, supports for…

Social comparison and prosocial behavior: an applied study of social identity theory in community food drives.

Science.gov (United States)

Shipley, Andrew

2008-04-01

Social Identity Theory and the concept of social comparison have inspired research on individuals, addressing effects of personal and environmental factors in directing social attention. The theory's conceptual origins, however, suggest that social comparison may have behavioral implications as well. Such behaviors may include attempts by an individual to enhance the relative status of his ingroup on a salient dimension of comparison. Such behavior is referred to as "social competition." In two studies, the effects of social comparison and social competition were measured in the real-world environment of community food drives. Participants were aggregated by household; 600 households in upper middle-class neighborhoods in Eugene and Salem, Oregon, were contacted. In Study 1 of 300 households, it was hypothesized that inclusion of a social competition cue in requests for donation would significantly increase the likelihood of donation. This hypothesis was supported. Study 2 was done to clarify the possible role in a social comparison of perceived ingroup inferiority in the prior observed increase in donations. The inclusion of a social comparison cue in the donation request significantly increased donations in households of the second study. The findings suggest that researchers should expand study of the theory's behavioral implications, including the role of social comparison in prosocial behavior.

Individual and Social Predictors of Prosocial Behavior among Chinese Adolescents in Hong Kong

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Lai, Frank H. Y.; Siu, Andrew M. H.; Shek, Daniel T. L.

2015-01-01

Based on the human ecological model, this study hypothesized that individual competence in empathy, prosocial moral reasoning, and social influence from parents, peers, and school are the key determinants of prosocial behavior among Chinese adolescents in Hong Kong. We recruited a sample of high school students who engaged in volunteering activities regularly (N = 580). They completed a self-administrated questionnaire designed to measure prosocial behavior and its hypothesized predictors using a number of standardized instruments. The results of multiple regression show that social influence factors, including peer, school, and parent influence, are strong predictors of helping intention and prosocial behavior, while individual competence factors like empathy and prosocial moral reasoning are not. Male participants had higher empathy scores and helping intention than females, perceived their parents as more helpful, and their schools as more supportive of prosocial behavior. However, the significant predictors of prosocial behavior and helping intention were similar across gender. The findings indicate that social influence is strongly linked to prosocial behavior. This implies that socialization and social support for prosocial norms and behavior can exert a powerful influence on the behavior of young people in a Chinese population. PMID:26029684

EVALUATING THE EFFECT OF AN EDUCATIONAL INTERVENTION ON PARENTS' NUTRITIONAL SOCIAL SUPPORT

OpenAIRE

Fatemeh Mokhtari1 , Soheila Ehsanpour2 and Ashraf Kazemi 3*

2017-01-01

Background: Social support is one of the important effective factors on health-related behaviors in different groups. The present study has evaluated the effect of an educational intervention on parents’ nutritional social support for having a healthy diet by teenagers. Methods: This field trial was conducted in two groups on the parents of 63 female early adolescent.The level of parents’ nutritional social support for having a healthy diet were measured using a questionnaire. One month after...

Behavioral evidence for differences in social and non-social category learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lucile eGamond

2012-08-01

Full Text Available When meeting someone for the very first time one spontaneously categorizes the seen person on the basis of his/her appearance. Categorization is based on the association between some physical features and category labels that can be social (character trait… or non-social (tall, thin. Surprisingly little is known about how such associations are formed, particularly in the social domain. Here, we aimed at testing whether social and non-social category learning may be dissociated. We presented subjects with a large number of faces that had to be rated according to social or non-social labels, and induced an association between a facial feature (inter-eye distance and the category labels using two different procedures. In a first experiment, we used a feedback procedure to reinforce the association; behavioral measures revealed an association between the physical feature manipulated and abstract non-social categories, while no evidence for an association with social labels could be found. In a second experiment, we used passive exposure to the association between physical features and labels; we obtained behavioral evidence for learning of both social and non-social categories. These results support the view of the specificity of social category learning; they suggest that social categories are best acquired through unsupervised procedures that can be considered as a simplified proxy for group transmission.

Private support and social securityPrivate support and social security

OpenAIRE

Frans van Dijk

1998-01-01

The issue is addressed whether assistance to persons in need can be left to the `family' and the `community'. In that case people depend on their social networks. The support a person receives through a given network of social ties is examined. However, ties are diverse and subject to change. By means of a model of the dynamics of social ties, the conditions for adequate private support are analyzed. The sustainability of private support over time is examined by incorporating the impact on so...

Social support and employment status modify the effect of intimate partner violence on depression symptom severity in women: results from the 2006 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Dougé, Nathalie; Lehman, Erik B; McCall-Hosenfeld, Jennifer S

2014-01-01

Depression and intimate partner violence (IPV) are significant health issues for U.S. women. Interaction effects between IPV and other psychosocial factors on the severity of depressive symptoms have not been fully explored. This study assessed effect modification, that is, how IPV interacts with sociodemographics, psychosocial factors and health risk behaviors, on the severity of depressive symptoms in women. We utilized cross-sectional data from female respondents (n = 16,106) of the 2006 Behavioral Risk Factors Surveillance Survey. Sociodemographics, psychosocial variables, and health risk behaviors determined to be significantly associated with depression were tested for interaction effects with IPV. Weighted ordinal logistic regression and predicted probabilities illustrated the effect of IPV status on depressive symptom severity, stratified by interaction effects. Recent and lifetime IPV exposure were associated with more severe depressive symptoms compared with no IPV exposure. IPV history interacted with employment status and social support on the severity of depressive symptoms in women. Overall, any IPV exposure was associated with more severe depressive symptoms among women with low social support and unemployment, although the effect of recent (versus lifetime) IPV was most pronounced among women with high social support or employed women. Social support and employment status interact with IPV on the severity of depressive symptoms in women. Therefore, social support or workplace interventions designed to improve depressive symptoms should examine IPV history. Copyright © 2014 Jacobs Institute of Women's Health. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Interaction patterns of nurturant support exchanged in online health social networking.

Science.gov (United States)

Chuang, Katherine Y; Yang, Christopher C

2012-05-03

Expressing emotion in online support communities is an important aspect of enabling e-patients to connect with each other and expand their social resources. Indirectly it increases the amount of support for coping with health issues. Exploring the supportive interaction patterns in online health social networking would help us better understand how technology features impacts user behavior in this context. To build on previous research that identified different types of social support in online support communities by delving into patterns of supportive behavior across multiple computer-mediated communication formats. Each format combines different architectural elements, affecting the resulting social spaces. Our research question compared communication across different formats of text-based computer-mediated communication provided on the MedHelp.org health social networking environment. We identified messages with nurturant support (emotional, esteem, and network) across three different computer-mediated communication formats (forums, journals, and notes) of an online support community for alcoholism using content analysis. Our sample consisted of 493 forum messages, 423 journal messages, and 1180 notes. Nurturant support types occurred frequently among messages offering support (forum comments: 276/412 messages, 67.0%; journal posts: 65/88 messages, 74%; journal comments: 275/335 messages, 82.1%; and notes: 1002/1180 messages, 84.92%), but less often among messages requesting support. Of all the nurturing supports, emotional (ie, encouragement) appeared most frequently, with network and esteem support appearing in patterns of varying combinations. Members of the Alcoholism Community appeared to adapt some traditional face-to-face forms of support to their needs in becoming sober, such as provision of encouragement, understanding, and empathy to one another. The computer-mediated communication format may have the greatest influence on the supportive interactions

Social Support and Mental Health in LGBTQ Adolescents: A review of the literature.

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McDonald, Kari

2018-01-01

LGBTQ adolescents experience higher rates of mental health disorders than their heterosexual peers. The purpose of this systematic review of the literature was to examine studies evaluating social support and its effects on mental health in the LGBTQ adolescent population. Higher levels of social support were associated with positive self-esteem. Lack of social support (or low social support) was associated with higher levels of depression, anxiety, alcohol or drug misuse, risky sexual behaviors, shame, and low self-esteem. Interdisciplinary research teams from multiple and diverse professions could provide valuable insight supporting the development of inclusive and comprehensive interventions programs for this population.

The behavioral outcomes of a technology-supported leisure activity in people with dementia

NARCIS (Netherlands)

J.E.W.C. Gemert-Pijnen; N. Nijhof; Joost van Hoof; H. van Rijn

2013-01-01

BACKGROUND: This paper presents the results of an evaluation of a technology-supported leisure game for people with dementia in relation to the stimulation of social behavior. OBJECTIVE: In this study we explore the additional impact of technology-supported leisure activities on behavioral outcomes

Social integration, psychological distress, and smoking behaviors in a midwest LGBT community.

Science.gov (United States)

Sivadon, Angela; Matthews, Alicia K; David, Kevin M

2014-01-01

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) populations have smoking rates twice that of their heterosexual counterparts. To design effective outreach, prevention, and treatments for these individuals, a comprehensive understanding of associated factors is needed. To increase understanding of how social integration and psychological distress are related to smoking behaviors among LGBT populations. A cross-sectional, descriptive study of 135 LGBT adults using an online data collection strategy. Multivariate analyses were performed to examine factors associated with current smoking status. Social integration was not significantly related to smoking behaviors in this LGBT population, although psychological distress was higher among smokers than nonsmokers. Although social support has been reported to have an impact on health behaviors in the general population, the present findings suggest that the benefits of social support may not apply to the smoking activities of LGBT individuals. © The Author(s) 2014.

Social support and ambulatory blood pressure in older people.

Science.gov (United States)

Sanchez-Martínez, Mercedes; López-García, Esther; Guallar-Castillón, Pilar; Cruz, Juan J; Orozco, Edilberto; García-Esquinas, Esther; Rodríguez-Artalejo, Fernando; Banegas, José R

2016-10-01

Social support has been associated with greater nocturnal decline (dipping) in blood pressure (BP) in younger and middle-aged individuals. However, it is uncertain if aggregated measures of social support are related to ambulatory SBP in older adults, where high SBP is frequent and clinically challenging. We studied 1047 community-living individuals aged at least 60 years in Spain. Twenty-four-hour ambulatory BP was determined under standardized conditions. Social support was assessed with a seven-item questionnaire on marital status, cohabitation, frequency of contact with relatives, or with friends and neighbors, emotional support, instrumental support, and outdoor companionship. A social support score was built by summing the values of the items that were significantly associated with SBP variables, such that the higher the score, the better the support. Participants' mean age was 71.7 years (50.8% men). Being married, cohabiting, and being accompanied when out of home were the support items significantly associated with SBP variables. After adjustment for sociodemographic (age, sex, education), behavioral (BMI, alcohol, tobacco, salt consumption, physical activity, Mediterranean diet score), and clinical variables [sleep quality, mental stress, comorbidity, BP medication, and ambulatory BP levels and heart rate (HR)], one additional point in the social support score built with the abovementioned three support variables, was associated with a decrease of 0.93 mmHg in night-time SBP (P = 0.039), totaling 2.8 mmHg decrease for a score of 3 vs. 0. The three-item social support score was also inversely associated with the night/day SBP ratio (β = -0.006, P = 0.010). In older adults, social support is independently associated with lower nocturnal SBP and greater SBP dipping. Further research is needed in prospective studies to confirm these results.

Applying behavior analysis to school violence and discipline problems: Schoolwide positive behavior support

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Cynthia M.; Kincaid, Donald

2005-01-01

School discipline is a growing concern in the United States. Educators frequently are faced with discipline problems ranging from infrequent but extreme problems (e.g., shootings) to less severe problems that occur at high frequency (e.g., bullying, insubordination, tardiness, and fighting). Unfortunately, teachers report feeling ill prepared to deal effectively with discipline problems in schools. Further, research suggests that many commonly used strategies, such as suspension, expulsion, and other reactive strategies, are not effective for ameliorating discipline problems and may, in fact, make the situation worse. The principles and technology of behavior analysis have been demonstrated to be extremely effective for decreasing problem behavior and increasing social skills exhibited by school children. Recently, these principles and techniques have been applied at the level of the entire school, in a movement termed schoolwide positive behavior support. In this paper we review the tenets of schoolwide positive behavior support, demonstrating the relation between this technology and applied behavior analysis. PMID:22478439

Is history of suicidal behavior related to social support and quality of life in outpatients with bipolar I disorder?

Science.gov (United States)

Studart, Paula; Galvão-de Almeida, Amanda; Bezerra-Filho, Severino; Caribé, André; Reis Afonso, Nayanne; Daltro, Carla; Miranda-Scippa, Ângela

2016-12-30

Bipolar disorder (BD) affects the social functioning and quality of life (QoL) of its patients. This study aimed to investigate whether there is an association between social support (SS), and suicidal behavior in BD I patients compared to healthy controls; secondarily, we evaluated the influence of QoL on those variables. A total of 119 euthymic outpatients with BD I, 46 of whom had attempted suicide (SAs) and 73 who had not (non-SAs), were compared to 63 healthy controls, through the Medical Outcomes Study Social Support Scale and World Health Organization's Quality of Life Instrument. No differences were noted in SS and QoL between SAs and non-SAs. Compared to healthy controls, non-SAs showed lower values in the positive social interaction domain of SS, and the patients, as a whole, showed lower values in affectionate and positive social interaction domains of SS. Compared to healthy controls, SAs had lower values in the environmental domain of QoL, and the patients, as a whole, had lower values in the environmental, social, and psychological domains of QoL. There was positive correlation between SS and QoL. Although BD is a disabling disease, patients receive inadequate SS. Interventions that may alter the SS in these patients should be investigated. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Maternal sensitivity and social support protect against childhood atopic dermatitis.

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Letourneau, Nicole L; Kozyrskyj, Anita L; Cosic, Nela; Ntanda, Henry N; Anis, Lubna; Hart, Martha J; Campbell, Tavis S; Giesbrecht, Gerald F

2017-01-01

Many studies have identified associations between qualities of maternal-child relationships and childhood asthma, but few have examined associations with childhood atopic dermatitis (AD), a common precursor to asthma. Moreover, maternal psychological distress, including prenatal and postnatal depression, anxiety and stress, may increase risk, while social support from partners may reduce risk for childhood AD. We sought to uncover the association between maternal-infant relationship qualities (maternal sensitivity towards infant behavioral signals, controlling behavior, and unresponsiveness) and child AD after accounting for risk (i.e., prenatal and postnatal maternal depression, anxiety and stress) and protective (i.e., social support) factors. We conducted a secondary analysis of data collected on a subsample of 242 women and their infants enrolled during pregnancy in the ongoing Alberta Pregnancy Outcomes and Nutrition cohort study. Inclusion criteria required mothers to be >16 years of age, English speaking and depression, anxiety and stress in the prenatal and postnatal periods and physician diagnosis of childhood AD at 18 months were gathered via maternal report. Maternal sensitivity, unresponsiveness and controlling behaviours were assessed via videotaped observations using the Child-Adult Relationship Experimental (CARE)-Index at 6 months of infant age. Higher maternal sensitivity, or the inability of the mother to appropriately understand and respond to infant needs based on behavioral signals, predicted reduced odds of AD independent of and in combination with low prenatal and postnatal anxiety and high paternal support. After adjustment, higher maternal controlling behaviours and unresponsiveness also predicted greater odds of AD. Low maternal sensitivity is a risk factor for childhood AD, independently and in combination with perinatal anxiety and low social support. Thus, interventions that improve maternal-infant relationship quality, especially

The Role of Social Support and Self-efficacy for Planning Fruit and Vegetable Intake.

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Zhou, Guangyu; Gan, Yiqun; Hamilton, Kyra; Schwarzer, Ralf

2017-02-01

The aim of the current study was to examine the joint effect of self-efficacy, action planning, and received social support on fruit and vegetable intake. The study used a longitudinal design with 3 waves of data collection. Major university campus in Beijing, China. Young adults (n = 286). Age, gender, body mass index, dietary self-efficacy, and baseline behavior were measured at time 1. Two weeks after time 1, received social support and action planning were assessed (time 2); 4 weeks after time 1, subsequent fruit and vegetable consumption was measured (time 3). In a path analysis, action planning at time 2 was specified as a mediator between self-efficacy at time 1 and fruit and vegetable intake at time 3, controlling for age, gender, body mass index, and baseline behavior. In addition, in a conditional process analysis, received social support at time 2 was specified as a moderator of the self-efficacy-planning relationship. Action planning mediated between self-efficacy and subsequent dietary behavior, and received social support moderated between self-efficacy and planning supporting a compensation effect. Action planning served as a proximal predictor of fruit and vegetable intake, and planning one's consumption was facilitated by dietary self-efficacy. Through the identification of social cognitive factors influencing dietary planning, interventions can target self-efficacy and received social support to test the efficacy of these mechanisms in increasing individuals' ability to ensure they consume adequate amounts of fruits and vegetables. Copyright © 2016 Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Social Support in a Virtual Community: Analysis of a Clinic-Affiliated Online Support Group for Persons Living with HIV/AIDS.

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Flickinger, Tabor E; DeBolt, Claire; Waldman, Ava Lena; Reynolds, George; Cohn, Wendy F; Beach, Mary Catherine; Ingersoll, Karen; Dillingham, Rebecca

2017-11-01

Social support can improve outcomes for people living with HIV (PLWH) and could be provided through online support groups. The Positive Links smartphone app is a multicomponent intervention that allows users to interact in a clinic-affiliated anonymous online support group. We investigated how social support was exchanged in a group of 55 participants over 8 months, using an adaptation of the Social Support Behavior Code. Participant interviews assessed their experiences and perceptions of the app. Of 840 posts analyzed, 115 (14 %) were coded as eliciting social support and 433 (52 %) as providing social support. Messages providing support were predominantly emotional (41 %), followed by network (27 %), esteem (24 %), informational (18 %), and instrumental (2 %) support. Participants perceived connection and support as key benefits of the app. Technical issues and interpersonal barriers limited some participants in fully using the app. Mobile technology offers a useful tool to reach populations with barriers to in-person support and may improve care for PLWH.

#Stupidcancer: Exploring a Typology of Social Support and the Role of Emotional Expression in a Social Media Community.

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Myrick, Jessica Gall; Holton, Avery E; Himelboim, Itai; Love, Brad

2016-01-01

Social network sites (SNSs) like Twitter continue to attract users, many of whom turn to these spaces for social support for serious illnesses like cancer. Building on literature that explored the functionality of online spaces for health-related social support, we propose a typology that situates this type of support in an SNS-based open cancer community based on the type (informational or emotional) and the direction (expression or reception) of support. A content analysis applied the typology to a 2-year span of Twitter messages using the popular hashtag "#stupidcancer." Given that emotions form the basis for much of human communication and behavior, including aspects of social support, this content analysis also examined the relationship between emotional expression and online social support in tweets about cancer. Furthermore, this study looked at the various ways in which Twitter allows for message sharing across a user's entire network (not just among the cancer community). This work thus begins to lay the conceptual and empirical groundwork for future research testing the effects of various types of social support in open, interactive online cancer communities.

She's supporting them; who's supporting her? Preschool center-level social-emotional supports and teacher well-being.

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Zinsser, Katherine M; Christensen, Claire G; Torres, Luz

2016-12-01

Preschool teachers across the country have been charged to prepare children socially and emotionally for kindergarten. Teachers working in preschool centers are supporting children's social and emotional learning (SEL) within a rich ecology of emotion and social relationships and the present study considers how the supports implemented for children's SEL at the center-level are associated with teachers' psychological health and workplace experiences. Hierarchical linear models were constructed using data from the Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey 2009 cohort. Results indicate that although teachers work in individual classrooms, they share common perceptions at the center-level of their workplace climate, access to support, and, although to a lesser extent, experience commonalities in psychological health and job satisfaction. Furthermore, in centers that had implemented more supports for children's SEL (including access to mental health consultants, classroom curriculum, and training and resources for teachers) teachers were less depressed, more satisfied with their jobs, felt more supported in managing challenging behavior, and viewed the workplace climate of their center as more positive. Findings are discussed in light of the national efforts to increase and retain a high-quality early childhood workforce. Copyright © 2016 Society for the Study of School Psychology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Utilizing Social Stories to Increase Prosocial Behavior and Reduce Problem Behavior in Young Children with Autism

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Lisa A. Wright

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this paper was to evaluate the effects of a Social Story intervention on the behavior rates of 4 young children with autism using a multiple-baseline across participants design. The results of this paper indicate that the Social Story was modestly effective in increasing prosocial behavior rates in 3 of the 4 participants, though none of the participants reached the prosocial behavior rates of age and gender-matched peers. The problem behaviors of the participants modestly decreased with the intervention. Maintenance of skills over a 1-month period was demonstrated for all of the participants. The variable and inconsistent results of the research add to the current literature base in support of the use of Social Stories for some children with autism.

Perceived Social Support From Friends and Parents for Eating Behavior and Diet Quality Among Low-Income, Urban, Minority Youth.

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Anderson Steeves, Elizabeth; Jones-Smith, Jessica; Hopkins, Laura; Gittelsohn, Joel

2016-05-01

Evidence of associations between social support and dietary intake among adolescents is mixed. This study examines relationships between social support for healthy and unhealthy eating from friends and parents, and associations with diet quality. Cross-sectional analysis of survey data. Baltimore, MD. 296 youth aged 9-15 years, 53% female, 91% African American, participating in the B'More Healthy Communities for Kids study. Primary dependent variable: diet quality measured using Healthy Eating Index 2010 (HEI) overall score, calculated from the Block Kids Food Frequency Questionnaire. Social support from parents and friends for healthy eating (4 questions analyzed as a scale) and unhealthy eating (3 questions analyzed individually), age, gender, race, and household income, reported via questionnaire. Adjusted multiple linear regressions (α, P Friend and parent support for healthy eating did not have statistically significant relationships with overall HEI scores. Youth who reported their parents offering high-fat foods or sweets more frequently had lower overall HEI scores (β = -1.65; SE = 0.52; 95% confidence interval, -2.66 to -0.63). These results are novel and demonstrate the need for additional studies examining support for unhealthy eating. These preliminary findings may be relevant to researchers as they develop family-based nutrition interventions. Copyright © 2016 Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Socialization and organizational citizenship behavior among Turkish primary and secondary school teachers.

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Çavuş, Mustafa Fedai

2012-01-01

The aim of the present study is to investigate the effects of organizational socialization levels of employees on organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). A total of 185 (70 female, 115 male) teachers were sampled at 27 primary and secondary schools. Their ages ranged from 23 to 55 years, with a mean (SD) of 36 (5.1). In this sample, 100 (54.1%) worked in primary schools, and 85 (45.9%) worked in secondary schools. A three-part questionnaire was designed for the study. The research scales were self-report measures of organizational socialization, OCB, and demographic variables. The hypothesized model was tested using Pearson correlation analyses and multiple regression analyses. The teachers demonstrated high level socialization (Mean 4.2, SD 0.7) and OCB (Mean 4.0, SD 0.54). Understanding, coworker support, and performance proficiency explained significant variance in organizational citizenship behavior; however, there was no relationship (p=0.286) between the organizational goals and values and OCB. The findings contribute to our understanding of the relationship between the level of organizational socialization and organizational citizenship behavior in educational settings. These findings suggest that high level organizational socialization supports organizational citizenship behavior in primary and secondary school teachers.

Longitudinal Mediation Modeling of Unhealthy Behaviors as Mediators between Workplace Demands/Support and Depressive Symptoms

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Magnusson Hanson, Linda L.; Peristera, Paraskevi; Chungkham, Holendro Singh; Westerlund, Hugo

2016-01-01

Lifestyle has been regarded as a key pathway through which adverse psychosocial working characteristics can give rise to long-term health problems. The purpose of this study was to estimate the indirect/mediated effect of health behaviors in the longitudinal work characteristics-depression relationship. The analyses were based on the Swedish Longitudinal Occupational Survey of Health, including 3706 working participants with repeat survey measures on four occasions (2008, 2010, 2012 and 2014). Psychosocial work characteristics including demands and social support were analyzed in relation to depressive symptoms. Autoregressive longitudinal mediation models using structural equation modeling were used to estimate the intermediate effects of unhealthy behaviors including current smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, unhealthy diet and physical inactivity. Both workplace demands and social support were related to later depressive symptoms. In bivariate models we found no significant paths from workplace demands to health behaviors, but two out of three significant time-specific paths from workplace support to excessive drinking and from excessive drinking to depressive symptoms. Social support was also associated with subsequent unhealthy diet, and one path from unhealthy diet to depressive symptoms was found. However, despite indications of certain longitudinal relationships between psychosocial working conditions and health behaviors as well as between health behaviors and depressive symptoms, no significant intermediate effects were found (p>0.05). We conclude that changes in unhealthy behaviors over a period of two years are unlikely to act as strong intermediaries in the longitudinal relationship between job demands and depressive symptoms and between social support and depressive symptoms. PMID:28036376

Longitudinal Mediation Modeling of Unhealthy Behaviors as Mediators between Workplace Demands/Support and Depressive Symptoms.

Science.gov (United States)

Magnusson Hanson, Linda L; Peristera, Paraskevi; Chungkham, Holendro Singh; Westerlund, Hugo

2016-01-01

Lifestyle has been regarded as a key pathway through which adverse psychosocial working characteristics can give rise to long-term health problems. The purpose of this study was to estimate the indirect/mediated effect of health behaviors in the longitudinal work characteristics-depression relationship. The analyses were based on the Swedish Longitudinal Occupational Survey of Health, including 3706 working participants with repeat survey measures on four occasions (2008, 2010, 2012 and 2014). Psychosocial work characteristics including demands and social support were analyzed in relation to depressive symptoms. Autoregressive longitudinal mediation models using structural equation modeling were used to estimate the intermediate effects of unhealthy behaviors including current smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, unhealthy diet and physical inactivity. Both workplace demands and social support were related to later depressive symptoms. In bivariate models we found no significant paths from workplace demands to health behaviors, but two out of three significant time-specific paths from workplace support to excessive drinking and from excessive drinking to depressive symptoms. Social support was also associated with subsequent unhealthy diet, and one path from unhealthy diet to depressive symptoms was found. However, despite indications of certain longitudinal relationships between psychosocial working conditions and health behaviors as well as between health behaviors and depressive symptoms, no significant intermediate effects were found (p>0.05). We conclude that changes in unhealthy behaviors over a period of two years are unlikely to act as strong intermediaries in the longitudinal relationship between job demands and depressive symptoms and between social support and depressive symptoms.

The meaning of social support for the critically ill patient.

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Hupcey, J E

2001-08-01

Social support has been shown to be important for the critically ill patient. However, what constitutes adequate support for these patients has not been investigated. Thus, the purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate patients' perceptions of their need for and adequacy of the social support received while they were critically ill. Thirty adult patients who were critical during some point of their stay in the intensive care unit (ICU) stay were interviewed, once stable. Interviews were tape-recorded and began with an open-ended question regarding the ICU experience. This was followed by open-ended focused questions regarding social support, such as 'Who were your greatest sources of social support while you were critically ill?' 'What did they do that was supportive or unsupportive?' Data were analyzed according to Miles and Huberman (1994). The categories that emerged were need for social support based on patient perceptions (not number of visitors), quality of support (based on perceptions of positive and negative behaviors of supporters) and lack of support. This study found that quality of support was more important than the actual number of visitors. Patients with few visitors may have felt supported, while those with numerous visitors felt unsupported. Patients who felt unsupported also were more critical of the staff and the care they received. Nurses need to individually assess patients regarding their need for support, and assist family/friends to meet these needs.

Understanding Soccer Team Supporters' Behavior and Culture in a Globalized Society from Social Learning Theory

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Lee, Seungbum; Han, Keunsu

2012-01-01

Whereas there have been many academic studies on European soccer team supporters, relatively few studies have looked at supporters in Asia, especially regarding their supporting behavior and culture. Broadly, the purpose of this paper is to describe the behavior and culture of supporters of the Korean professional soccer league (K-League).…

Online Social Support for Young People: Does It Recapitulate In-person Social Support; Can It Help?

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Cole, David A; Nick, Elizabeth A; Zelkowitz, Rachel L; Roeder, Kathryn M; Spinelli, Tawny

2017-03-01

As social media websites have grown in popularity, public concern about online victimization has grown as well; however, much less attention has focused on the possible beneficial effects of online social networks. If theory and research about in-person social networks pertain, then online social relationships may represent an important modern source of or vehicle for support. In a study of 231 undergraduates, three major findings emerged: (1) for people with weaker in-person social support, social media sites provide a source of social support that is less redundant of the social support they receive in person; (2) in ways that were not redundant of each other, both online and in-person social support were associated with lower levels of depression-related thoughts and feelings, and (3) the beneficial effects of online social support (like in-person social support) offset some of the adverse effects of peer victimization. The study suggests that augmenting social relations via strategic use of social media can enhance young people's social support systems in beneficial ways.

The Associations among Sibling and Peer-Bullying, Social Support and Internalizing Behaviors

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Coyle, Samantha; Demaray, Michelle K.; Malecki, Christine K.; Tennant, Jaclyn E.; Klossing, Jacqueline

2017-01-01

Background: Peer bullying is associated with internalizing problems for children and adolescents. However, less is known about how these same behaviors are related to student well-being when they occur within the context of the sibling relationship and how supportive behavior may benefit those experiencing bullying. Objective: The purpose of this…

Cultural variation in communal versus exchange norms: Implications for social support.

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Miller, Joan G; Akiyama, Hiroko; Kapadia, Shagufa

2017-07-01

Whereas an interdependent cultural view of self has been linked to communal norms and to socially supportive behavior, its relationship to social support has been called into question in research suggesting that discomfort in social support is associated with an interdependent cultural view of self (e.g., Taylor et al., 2004). These contrasting claims were addressed in 2 studies conducted among Japanese, Indian, and American adults. Assessing everyday social support, Study 1 showed that Japanese and Americans rely on exchange norms more frequently than Indians among friends, whereas American rely on exchange norms more frequently than Indians and Japanese among siblings. Assessing responses to vignettes, Study 2 demonstrated that Japanese and Americans rely more frequently on exchange norms than Indians, with greatest relational concerns and most negative outlooks on social support observed among Japanese, less among Americans, and least among Indians. Results further indicated that relational concerns mediated the link between exchange norms and negative social support outlooks. Supporting past claims that relational concerns explain cultural variation in discomfort in social support (e.g., Kim, Sherman, & Taylor, 2008), the findings underscore the need to take into account as well the role of exchange norms in explaining such discomfort. The findings also highlight the existence of culturally variable approaches to exchange and call into question claims that discomfort in social support can be explained in terms of the global concept of an interdependent cultural view of self. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

An Evaluation of Behavioral Skills Training for Teaching Caregivers How to Support Social Skill Development in Their Child with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

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Hassan, Mahfuz; Simpson, Andrea; Danaher, Katey; Haesen, James; Makela, Tanya; Thomson, Kendra

2018-06-01

Limited research has explored how to best train caregivers to support their child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) despite caregivers being well suited to promote generalization and maintenance of their child's skills in the natural environment. Children with ASD have been shown to benefit from social skill training, which is not always conducted in the natural context. This research examined the efficacy of behavioral skills training (BST) with, and without in situ training (IST), for teaching caregivers how to also use BST to support their child's context-specific social skills. Although caregivers met mastery criterion within BST sessions, their skills did not generalize to the natural environment until IST was introduced. The implications of the findings are discussed.

Social carry-over effects on non-social behavioral variation: mechanisms and consequences

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Petri Toivo Niemelä

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The field of animal personality is interested in decomposing behaviors into different levels of variation, with its present focus on the ecological and evolutionary causes and consequences of expressed variation. Recently the role of the social environment, i.e. social partners, has been suggested to affect behavioral variation and induce selection on animal personality. Social partner effects exist because characters of social partners (e.g. size, behavior, affect the behavioral expression of a focal individual. Here, we 1 first review the proximate mechanisms underlying the social partner effects on behavioral expression and the timescales at which such effects might take place. We then 2 discuss how within- and among-individual variation in single behaviors and covariation between multiple behaviors, caused by social partners, can carry-over to non-social behaviors expressed outside the social context. Finally, we 3 highlight evolutionary consequences of social carry-over effects to non-social behaviors and 4 suggest study designs and statistical approaches which can be applied to study the nature and evolutionary consequences of social carry-over effects on non-social behaviors. Understanding the proximate mechanisms underpinning the social partner effects is important since it opens a door for deeper understanding of how social environments can affect behavioral variation and covariation at multiple levels, and the evolution of non-social behaviors (i.e. exploration, activity, boldness that are affected by social interactions.

Hormone response to bidirectional selection on social behavior.

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Amdam, Gro V; Page, Robert E; Fondrk, M Kim; Brent, Colin S

2010-01-01

Behavior is a quantitative trait determined by multiple genes. Some of these genes may have effects from early development and onward by influencing hormonal systems that are active during different life-stages leading to complex associations, or suites, of traits. Honey bees (Apis mellifera) have been used extensively in experiments on the genetic and hormonal control of complex social behavior, but the relationships between their early developmental processes and adult behavioral variation are not well understood. Bidirectional selective breeding on social food-storage behavior produced two honey bee strains, each with several sublines, that differ in an associated suite of anatomical, physiological, and behavioral traits found in unselected wild type bees. Using these genotypes, we document strain-specific changes during larval, pupal, and early adult life-stages for the central insect hormones juvenile hormone (JH) and ecdysteroids. Strain differences correlate with variation in female reproductive anatomy (ovary size), which can be influenced by JH during development, and with secretion rates of ecdysteroid from the ovaries of adults. Ovary size was previously assigned to the suite of traits of honey bee food-storage behavior. Our findings support that bidirectional selection on honey bee social behavior acted on pleiotropic gene networks. These networks may bias a bee's adult phenotype by endocrine effects on early developmental processes that regulate variation in reproductive traits. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Crying in Context: Understanding Associations With Interpersonal Dependency and Social Support

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Katherine L. Fiori

2013-06-01

Full Text Available This study examines the associations among interpersonal dependency, social support, and crying proneness, since crying is a behavior that is particularly relevant to the affiliative interpersonal goals characterizing maladaptive forms of dependency (Keltner & Kring, 1998. Data were collected from 305 first-year university students (M age = 18 years. A series of hierarchical linear regressions, controlling for gender, commuting status, romantic relationship status, stress, loneliness, and depressive symptoms, partially supported our hypotheses. That is, we found that a measure of maladaptive dependency (destructive overdependence, or DO and crying proneness were positively correlated, and that DO moderated the associations between social support and crying proneness. Specifically, we found that social support and crying were more closely positively associated among individuals high on DO compared to individuals low on DO. Our findings imply that interpersonal dependency may be an important factor in understanding individual differences in crying, and in determining whether crying is a successful elicitor of social support.

Moving Forward: Positive Behavior Support and Applied Behavior Analysis

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Tincani, Matt

2007-01-01

A controversy has emerged about the relationship between positive behavior support and applied behavior analysis. Some behavior analysts suggest that positive behavior support and applied behavior analysis are the same (e.g., Carr & Sidener, 2002). Others argue that positive behavior support is harmful to applied behavior analysis (e.g., Johnston,…

A Dual-Process Model of the Alcohol-Behavior Link for Social Drinking

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Moss, Antony C.; Albery, Ian P.

2009-01-01

A dual-process model of the alcohol-behavior link is presented, synthesizing 2 of the major social-cognitive approaches: expectancy and myopia theories. Substantial evidence has accrued to support both of these models, and recent neurocognitive models of the effects of alcohol on thought and behavior have provided evidence to support both as well.…

Social identity shapes social valuation: evidence from prosocial behavior and vicarious reward.

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Hackel, Leor M; Zaki, Jamil; Van Bavel, Jay J

2017-08-01

People frequently engage in more prosocial behavior toward members of their own groups, as compared to other groups. Such group-based prosociality may reflect either strategic considerations concerning one's own future outcomes or intrinsic value placed on the outcomes of in-group members. In a functional magnetic resonance imaging experiment, we examined vicarious reward responses to witnessing the monetary gains of in-group and out-group members, as well as prosocial behavior towards both types of individuals. We found that individuals' investment in their group-a motivational component of social identification-tracked the intensity of their responses in ventral striatum to in-group (vs out-group) members' rewards, as well as their tendency towards group-based prosociality. Individuals with strong motivational investment in their group preferred rewards for an in-group member, whereas individuals with low investment preferred rewards for an out-group member. These findings suggest that the motivational importance of social identity-beyond mere similarity to group members-influences vicarious reward and prosocial behavior. More broadly, these findings support a theoretical framework in which salient social identities can influence neural representations of subjective value, and suggest that social preferences can best be understood by examining the identity contexts in which they unfold. © The Author (2017). Published by Oxford University Press.

Offline Social Relationships and Online Cancer Communication: Effects of Social and Family Support on Online Social Network Building.

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Namkoong, Kang; Shah, Dhavan V; Gustafson, David H

2017-11-01

This study investigates how social support and family relationship perceptions influence breast cancer patients' online communication networks in a computer-mediated social support (CMSS) group. To examine social interactions in the CMSS group, we identified two types of online social networks: open and targeted communication networks. The open communication network reflects group communication behaviors (i.e., one-to-many or "broadcast" communication) in which the intended audience is not specified; in contrast, the targeted communication network reflects interpersonal discourses (i.e., one-to-one or directed communication) in which the audience for the message is specified. The communication networks were constructed by tracking CMSS group usage data of 237 breast cancer patients who participated in one of two National Cancer Institute-funded randomized clinical trials. Eligible subjects were within 2 months of a diagnosis of primary breast cancer or recurrence at the time of recruitment. Findings reveal that breast cancer patients who perceived less availability of offline social support had a larger social network size in the open communication network. In contrast, those who perceived less family cohesion had a larger targeted communication network in the CMSS group, meaning they were inclined to use the CMSS group for developing interpersonal relationships.

Sniffing behavior communicates social hierarchy.

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Wesson, Daniel W

2013-04-08

Sniffing is a specialized respiratory behavior that is essential for the acquisition of odors [1-4]. Perhaps not independent of this, sniffing is commonly displayed during motivated [5-7] and social behaviors [8, 9]. No measures of sniffing among interacting animals are available, however, calling into question the utility of this behavior in the social context. From radiotelemetry recordings of nasal respiration, I found that investigation by one rat toward the facial region of a conspecific often elicits a decrease in sniffing frequency in the conspecific. This reciprocal display of sniffing was found to be dependent upon the rat's social status in two separate paradigms, with subordinates reliably decreasing their sniffing frequency upon being investigated in the face by dominant rats. Failure of subordinates to decrease their sniffing frequency shortened the latency for agonistic behavior by dominant rats, reflecting that decreases in sniffing serve as appeasement signals during social interactions. Rats rendered unable to smell persisted in displaying reciprocal sniffing behavior, demonstrating the independence of this behavior from olfaction. Oxytocin treatment in rats with established social hierarchies abolished agonistic behaviors and reciprocal sniffing displays. Together, these findings demonstrate that rodents utilize sniffing behaviors communicatively, not only to collect [6, 10-14] but also to convey information. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Early Nonparental Care and Social Behavior in Elementary School: Support for a Social Group Adaptation Hypothesis

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Pingault, Jean-Baptiste; Tremblay, Richard E.; Vitaro, Frank; Japel, Christa; Boivin, Michel; Côté, Sylvana M.

2015-01-01

This study examined the contribution of nonparental child-care services received during the preschool years to the development of social behavior between kindergarten and the end of elementary school with a birth cohort from Québec, Canada (N = 1,544). Mothers reported on the use of child-care services, while elementary school teachers rated…

The Influence of Rurality and Parental Affect on Kindergarten Children's Social and Behavioral Functioning

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Sheridan, Susan M.; Koziol, Natalie A.; Clarke, Brandy L.; Rispoli, Kristin M.; Coutts, Michael J.

2014-01-01

Research Findings: Children's early academic achievement is supported by positive social and behavioral skills, and difficulties with these skills frequently gives way to underachievement. Social and behavioral problems often arise as a product of parent-child interactional patterns and environmental influences. Few studies have examined the role…

Explaining the Relation between Religiousness and Reduced Suicidal Behavior: Social Support Rather than Specific Beliefs

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Robins, Alee; Fiske, Amy

2009-01-01

Religiousness has been associated with decreased risk of suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, and completed suicide, but the mechanisms underlying these associations are not well characterized. The present study examined the roles of religious beliefs and social support in that relation. A survey measuring religiousness, social support, suicidal…

Narcissism and Social Networking Behavior: A Meta-Analysis.

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Gnambs, Timo; Appel, Markus

2018-04-01

The increasing popularity of social networking sites (SNS) such as Facebook and Twitter has given rise to speculations that the intensity of using these platforms is associated with narcissistic tendencies. However, recent research on this issue has been all but conclusive. We present a three-level, random effects meta-analysis including 289 effect sizes from 57 studies (total N = 25,631) on the association between trait narcissism and social networking behavior. The meta-analysis identified a small to moderate effect of ρ = .17 (τ = .11), 95% CI [.13, .21], for grandiose narcissism that replicated across different social networking platforms, respondent characteristics, and time. Moderator analyses revealed pronounced cultural differences, with stronger associations in power-distant cultures. Moreover, social networking behaviors geared toward self-presentation and the number of SNS friends exhibited stronger effects than usage durations. Overall, the study not only supported but also refined the notion of a relationship between engaging in social networking sites and narcissistic personality traits. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Religious Participation is Associated with Increases in Religious Social Support in a National Longitudinal Study of African Americans.

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Le, Daisy; Holt, Cheryl L; Hosack, Dominic P; Huang, Jin; Clark, Eddie M

2016-08-01

This study reports on the association between religious beliefs and behaviors and the change in both general and religious social support using two waves of data from a national sample of African Americans. The Religion and Health in African Americans (RHIAA) study is a longitudinal telephone survey designed to examine relationships between various aspects of religious involvement and psychosocial factors over time. RHIAA participants were 3173 African American men (1281) and women (1892). A total of 1251 men (456) and women (795) participated in wave 2 of data collection. Baseline religious behaviors were associated with increased overall religious social support from baseline to wave 2 (p social support from baseline to wave 2 in each of the following religious social support subscales: emotional support received (p social support. African Americans who are active in faith communities showed increases in all types of religious social support, even the negative aspects, over a relatively modest longitudinal study period. This illustrates the strength of the church as a social network and the role that it plays in people's lives.

Telephone-administered psychotherapy for depression in MS patients: moderating role of social support.

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Beckner, Victoria; Howard, Isa; Vella, Lea; Mohr, David C

2010-02-01

Depression is common in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS). While psychotherapy is an effective treatment for depression, not all individuals benefit. We examined whether baseline social support might differentially affect treatment outcome in 127 participants with MS and depression randomized to either Telephone-administered Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (T-CBT) or Telephone-administered Emotion-Focused Therapy (T-EFT). We predicted that those with low social support would improve more in T-EFT, since this approach emphasizes the therapeutic relationship, while participants with strong social networks and presumably more emotional resources might fare better in the more structured and demanding T-CBT. We found that both level of received support and satisfaction with that support at baseline did moderate treatment outcome. Individuals with high social support showed a greater reduction in depressive symptoms in the T-CBT as predicted, but participants with low social support showed a similar reduction in both treatments. This suggests that for participants with high social support, CBT may be a more beneficial treatment for depression compared with EFT.

Social support and its association with diet self-care in patients with diabetes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cynthia Alarcón-Mora

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a major public health problem with many elements, such as self-care and social support, that could be interacting with its evolution. Nevertheless, there is no evidence of association between these two elements. Thus, this study aims to determine the relationship between medical, nutritional and physical activity self-care, perceived social support and duration of the disease. A cross-sectional Study was conducted on 126 people with diabetes with a mean age of 55 (±10.4 years old. The Summary of Diabetes Self-Care Activities Scale and the Medical Outcomes Study (MOS Social Support Survey were applied. Social support, specifically the instrumental one, may generate negative effects by limiting self-care behavior of a person. Based on these findings, it is possible to conclude that social support does not always turn out to be beneficial for people: having more instrumental support generates dependency and no responsibility on the diet.

Behavior problems and social competence in Brazilian children with specific language impairment

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Marina Leite Puglisi

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract This study aimed to investigate the behavior and social profile of Brazilian children with specific language impairment (SLI and explore whether the severity of language deficits was associated with behavioral problems and low social competence. Twenty-four children with SLI aged from 6 to 11 years who showed substantial expressive language problems and were receiving speech-language therapy were assessed through the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL. Children with SLI showed high rates of behavioral problems and low levels of social competence. With the exception of two subscales (“somatic” and “rule breaker”, the percentage of children with SLI at risk of behavioral problems was significantly higher than the same proportion in the general population; and almost all children with SLI (95.2 % demonstrated problems with social competence. The severity of language deficits was associated with the risk of behavioral problems according to only one criterion. No associations were found between the severity of language problems and social competence. The study provides cross-cultural evidence to support the existence of behavior problems and reduced social competence in children with SLI. Our findings point to the need of using a combination of measures to classify the severity of language problems rather than a single dimension.

Social support, oxytocin, and PTSD

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Olff, Miranda; Koch, Saskia B. J.; Nawijn, Laura; Frijling, Jessie L.; van Zuiden, Mirjam; Veltman, Dick J.

2014-01-01

A lack of social support and recognition by the environment is one of the most consistent risk factors for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and PTSD patients will recover faster with proper social support. The oxytocin system has been proposed to underlie beneficial effects of social support as

Social behavior in the "Age of Empathy"?-A social scientist's perspective on current trends in the behavioral sciences.

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Matusall, Svenja

2013-01-01

Recently, several behavioral sciences became increasingly interested in investigating biological and evolutionary foundations of (human) social behavior. In this light, prosocial behavior is seen as a core element of human nature. A central role within this perspective plays the "social brain" that is not only able to communicate with the environment but rather to interact directly with other brains via neuronal mind reading capacities such as empathy. From the perspective of a sociologist, this paper investigates what "social" means in contemporary behavioral and particularly brain sciences. It will be discussed what "social" means in the light of social neuroscience and a glance into the history of social psychology and the brain sciences will show that two thought traditions come together in social neuroscience, combining an individualistic and an evolutionary notion of the "social." The paper concludes by situating current research on prosocial behavior in broader social discourses about sociality and society, suggesting that to naturalize prosocial aspects in human life is a current trend in today's behavioral sciences and beyond.

Neural Circuit Mechanisms of Social Behavior.

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Chen, Patrick; Hong, Weizhe

2018-04-04

We live in a world that is largely socially constructed, and we are constantly involved in and fundamentally influenced by a broad array of complex social interactions. Social behaviors among conspecifics, either conflictive or cooperative, are exhibited by all sexually reproducing animal species and are essential for the health, survival, and reproduction of animals. Conversely, impairment in social function is a prominent feature of several neuropsychiatric disorders, such as autism spectrum disorders and schizophrenia. Despite the importance of social behaviors, many fundamental questions remain unanswered. How is social sensory information processed and integrated in the nervous system? How are different social behavioral decisions selected and modulated in brain circuits? Here we discuss conceptual issues and recent advances in our understanding of brain regions and neural circuit mechanisms underlying the regulation of social behaviors. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The Social Functions of Antisocial Behavior: Considerations for School Violence Prevention Strategies for Students with Disabilities

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Farmer, Thomas W.; Lane, Kathleen L.; Lee, David L.; Hamm, Jill V.; Lambert, Kerrylin

2012-01-01

Research on school social dynamics suggests that antisocial behavior is often supported by peer group processes particularly during late childhood and adolescence. Building from a social interactional framework, this article explores how information on the social functions of aggressive and disruptive behavior may help to guide function-based…

The Pedagogical Support for Preschool Children with Deviant Behavior

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Kostyunina, Nadezhda Y.; Kazaeva, Evgenia A.; Karimova, Raushan B.

2016-01-01

The relevance of the research problems of pedagogical support of preschool children with behavioral problems is explained by changes due and of taking place in modern Russia in various spheres of life: ecological and economic disadvantage, social instability, the growing influence of pseudo-culture, unfavorable climate in family, too busy parents,…

PERCEIVED SOCIAL SUPPORT AND PARENTS ADJUSTMENT

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Patrizia VELOTTI

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Social networks often provide an important source of support for new parents. General, parent support programs sustain social-emotional development of children. Different aspects could impact both the quantity and quality of the sources of social support and the perception that parents would had. This study examines the role of social support in the couples of new-parents and assesses the influence of attachment models on it. The Adult Attachment Interview (AAI and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS were administered to a sample of 100 participants. Results indicated a perception of social support more pronounced in women, mainly on the dimension of social support derived from the partner. Furthermore, for women and not for men, an association between attachment models to the AAI and the different perceptions of social support was revealed. Data seems support the opportunity to assess parents during early rehabilitation interventions. Support groups could be used with insecure parents and has positive effects in reducing stress and promoting adjustment to the disability for children and their families.

Heterogeneity in Social Dilemmas: The Case of Social Support

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Vogt, S.B.

2007-01-01

“Heterogeneous Social Dilemmas: The Case of Social Support” studies the level of social support between heterogeneous actors. We consider heterogeneity with respect to several individual properties: the likelihood of needing support, the costs of providing support, and the benefits from receiving

THE MEASUREMENT OF SOCIAL SUPPORT IN THE EUROPEAN RESEARCH ON INCAPACITATING DISEASES AND SOCIAL SUPPORT - THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SOCIAL SUPPORT QUESTIONNAIRE FOR TRANSACTIONS (SSQT)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

SUURMEIJER, TPBM; DOEGLAS, DM; BRIANCON, S; KRIJNEN, WP; KROL, B; SANDERMAN, R; MOUM, T; BJELLE, A; VANDENHEUVEL, WJA

Social support is supposed to have a beneficial effect on the health and wellbeing of people. It is a central concept in the 'EUropean Research on Incapacitating DIseaes and Social Support' (EURIDISS). In general, two main distinctions concerning social support are made in the literature, providing

The measurement of social support in the European Research on incapaciting diseases and social support : the development of the social support questionnaire for transactions (SSQT)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Suurmeijer, T P B M; Doeglas, D M; Briançon, S; Krijnen, W; Krol, B.; Sanderman, R.; Moum, T; Bjelle, A; van den Heuvel, W.J.A.

1995-01-01

Social support is supposed to have a beneficial effect on the health and wellbeing of people. It is a central concept in the "European Research on Incapacitating Diseases and Social Support" (EURIDISS). In general, two main distinctions concerning social support are made in the literature, providing

Private support and social security.

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Van Dijk, F

1998-01-01

"The issue is addressed whether assistance to persons in need can be left to the ¿family' and the ¿community'. In that case people depend on their social networks. The support a person receives through a given network of social ties is examined. However, ties are diverse and subject to change. By means of a model of the dynamics of social ties, the conditions for adequate private support are analyzed. The sustainability of private support over time is examined by incorporating the impact on social ties of lending and receiving support. It is shown that support is only an effective alternative in a limited number of situations." excerpt

A test of the stress-buffering model of social support in smoking cessation: is the relationship between social support and time to relapse mediated by reduced withdrawal symptoms?

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Creswell, Kasey G; Cheng, Yu; Levine, Michele D

2015-05-01

Social support has been linked to quitting smoking, but the mechanisms by which social support affects cessation are poorly understood. The current study tested a stress-buffering model of social support, which posits that social support protects or "buffers" individuals from stress related to quitting smoking. We hypothesized that social support would be negatively associated with risk of relapse, and that this effect would be mediated by reduced withdrawal and depressive symptoms (i.e., cessation-related stress) over time. Further, we predicted that trait neuroticism would moderate this mediational effect, such that individuals high in negative affectivity would show the greatest stress-buffering effects of social support. Participants were weight-concerned women (n = 349) ages 18-65 enrolled in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled smoking cessation trial of bupropion and cognitive behavioral therapy. Social support was assessed at baseline, and biochemically-verified abstinence, withdrawal-related symptoms, and depressive symptoms were assessed at 1-, 3-, 6-, and 12-months follow-up. Social support was negatively related to risk of relapse in survival models and negatively related to withdrawal symptoms and depression in mixed effects models. These relationships held after controlling for the effects of pre-quit day negative affect and depression symptoms, assignment to treatment condition, and number of cigarettes smoked per day. A temporal mediation model showed that the effect of social support on risk of relapse was mediated by reductions in withdrawal symptoms over time but not by depression over time. Contrary to hypotheses, we did not find that neuroticism moderated this mediation effect. Increased social support may buffer women from the harmful effects of cessation-related withdrawal symptoms, which in turn improve cessation outcomes. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Research on Nicotine and

Hospital safety climate and safety behavior: A social exchange perspective.

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Ancarani, Alessandro; Di Mauro, Carmela; Giammanco, Maria D

Safety climate is considered beneficial to the improvement of hospital safety outcomes. Nevertheless, the relations between two of its key constituents, namely those stemming from leader-subordinate relations and coworker support for safety, are still to be fully ascertained. This article uses the theoretical lens of Social Exchange Theory to study the joint impact of leader-member exchange in the safety sphere and coworker support for safety on safety-related behavior at the hospital ward level. Social exchange constructs are further related to the existence of a shame-/blame-free environment, seen as a potential antecedent of safety behavior. A cross-sectional study including 166 inpatients in hospital wards belonging to 10 public hospitals in Italy was undertaken to test the hypotheses developed. Hypothesized relations have been analyzed through a fully mediated multilevel structural equation model. This methodology allows studying behavior at the individual level, while keeping into account the heterogeneity among hospital specialties. Results suggest that the linkage between leader support for safety and individual safety behavior is mediated by coworker support on safety issues and by the creation of a shame-free environment. These findings call for the creation of a safety climate in which managerial efforts should be directed not only to the provision of new safety resources and the enforcement of safety rules but also to the encouragement of teamwork and freedom to report errors as ways to foster the capacity of the staff to communicate, share, and learn from each other.

Thinking Socially: Teaching Social Knowledge to Foster Social Behavioral Change

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Crooke, Pamela J.; Winner, Michelle Garcia; Olswang, Lesley B.

2016-01-01

This article addresses the complexity of what it means to "be social" from the perspective of social thinking. This perspective recognizes social cognitive processing abilities as the foundation for social knowledge and, in turn, social behaviors. The article further describes variables that influence how one understands how to do what…

Social capital and health-protective behavior intentions in an influenza pandemic.

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Chuang, Ying-Chih; Huang, Ya-Li; Tseng, Kuo-Chien; Yen, Chia-Hsin; Yang, Lin-hui

2015-01-01

Health-protective behaviors, such as receiving a vaccine, wearing a face mask, and washing hands frequently, can reduce the risk of contracting influenza. However, little is known about how social capital may influence health-protective behavior in the general population. This study examined whether each of the social capital dimensions (bonding, bridging, and linking) contributed to the intention to adopt any of the health-protective behaviors in an influenza pandemic. The data of this study were from the 2014 Taiwan Social Change Survey. A stratified, three-stage probability proportional-to-size sampling from across the nation, was conducted to select adults aged 20 years and older (N = 1,745). Bonding social capital was measured by the frequency of neighborly contact and support. Bridging social capital was measured based on association membership. Linking social capital was measured according to general government trust and trust in the government's capacity to counter an influenza pandemic. Binary logistic regressions were used to assess the multivariate associations between social capital and behavioral intention. The study results indicate that social capital may influence the response to influenza pandemic. Specifically, the intention to receive a vaccine and to wash hands more frequently were associated with the linking dimension and the bonding dimension of social capital, while the intention to wear a face mask was associated with all forms of social capital. The findings of this study suggest that government credibility and interpersonal networks may play a crucial role in health-protective behavior. This study provides new insights into how to improve the effectiveness of influenza prevention campaigns.

Implementing Schoolwide Positive Behavior Support in High School Settings: Analysis of Eight High Schools

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Flannery, K. Brigid; Frank, Jennifer L.; Kato, Mimi McGrath; Doren, Bonnie; Fenning, Pamela

2013-01-01

Schoolwide positive behavior support (SWPBS) is a systems-level intervention designed to prevent the occurrence of problem behavior and increase social competence. A growing body of research documents that SWPBS reduces problem behavior and improves academics (e.g., McIntosh, Chard, Boland, & Horner, 2006), yet documentation of the feasibility…

Associations between social support and condom use among commercial sex workers in China: a cross-sectional study.

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Ren Chen

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the association between social support and AIDS high-risk behaviors in commercial sex workers (CSWs in China. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was performed based on a convenience sample. Data were collected through questionnaire interviews including information about social demographic characteristics, the Social Support Rating Scale (SSRS and AIDS knowledge. Multiple logistic regression was performed to evaluate the association between social support and AIDS high-risk behaviors, specifically condom use during commercial sex. RESULTS: A total of 581 commercial sex workers from 4 counties in East China participated in the study. The majority of the participants were 15 to 30 years old (79.7%. Sources of individual and family support were mainly provided by their parents (50.3%, relatives and friends (46.3%, spouses (18.4%, respectively. Univariate analysis revealed that marital status, hobbies, smoking habit, individual monthly income and family monthly income were all significantly correlated with current levels of social support being received (P = 0.04, P = 0.00, P = 0.01, P = 0.01, P = 0.01, respectively. Furthermore, Multiple logistic regression analysis indicated that after adjusting for confounding factors, high levels of social support were significantly correlated with increased condom use at the last sexual encounter (P = 0.02, OR = 1.86, 95%CI: 1.10-3.16; and consistently in the past month with clients (P = 0.03, OR = 2.10, 95%CI: 1.09-4.04. CONCLUSION: CSWs with high levels of social support are more likely to use condoms during commercial sex. This suggests that increasing social support can potentially reduce AIDS-related high-risk behaviors and accordingly play an important role in AIDS prevention.

Frequency of family meals and 6-11-year-old children's social behaviors.

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Lora, Karina R; Sisson, Susan B; DeGrace, Beth W; Morris, Amanda S

2014-08-01

Family meals are regarded as an opportunity to promote healthy child development. In this brief report, we examined the relationship between frequency of family meals and children's social behaviors in 6-11-year-olds. The 2007 U.S. National Survey of Children's Health (NSCH) provided data on the frequency of family meals in a sample of 6-11-year-old children (N = 24,167). The following social behavior indicators were examined: child positive social skills, child problematic social behaviors, child engagement in school, and parental aggravation with the child. Individual logistic regression analyses were calculated in unadjusted and adjusted models. On average, families had 5.3 meals together per week. In adjusted models, more frequent family meals increased the odds of child positive social skills (OR = 1.08, 95% CI [1.02, 1.16]) and child engagement in school (OR = 1.11, 95% CI [1.06, 1.15]), and decreased the likelihood of child problematic social behaviors (OR = 0.92, 95% CI [0.87, 0.98]). There was no association between frequency of family meals and parental aggravation with the child (OR = 0.98, 95% CI [0.93, 1.04]). Findings support the promotion of family meals to benefit children's development of healthy social behaviors.

Injured athletes' perceptions about social support.

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Clement, Damien; Shannon, Vanessa R

2011-11-01

According to the buffering hypothesis, social support moderates the harmful effects of stress and, in turn, indirectly affects injured athletes' health and well-being. Previous research suggests that perceptions of social support influence athletes' psychological reactions, as well as their rehabilitation adherence, but additional research in this area is warranted. To examine injured athletes' perceptions regarding satisfaction, availability, and contribution for each of the 8 types of social support. Descriptive. Mid-Atlantic Division II and III institutions. 49 injured athletes. Social support was assessed using a modified version of the Social Support Survey. Injured athletes were significantly more satisfied with social support provided by athletic trainers (ATCs) than that provided by coaches and teammates. In addition, injured athletes reported that social support provided by ATCs contributed significantly more to their overall well-being. Athletes reported several significant differences regarding satisfaction and contribution to well-being among the 8 different types of social support. Injury, an unavoidable part of sport, is often accompanied by negative psychological reactions. This reaction may have a negative influence on an athlete's experience of injury and rehabilitation. Findings suggest that perceptions of social support provided by ATCs have the greatest influence on injured athletes' rehabilitation and well-being.

The role of the hippocampus in flexible cognition and social behavior

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Rachael D Rubin

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Successful behavior requires actively acquiring and representing information about the environment and people, and manipulating and using those acquired representations flexibly to optimally act in and on the world. The frontal lobes have figured prominently in most accounts of flexible or goal-directed behavior, as evidenced by often-reported behavioral inflexibility in individuals with frontal lobe dysfunction. Here, we propose that the hippocampus also plays a critical role by forming and reconstructing relational memory representations that underlie flexible cognition and social behavior. There is mounting evidence that damage to the hippocampus can produce inflexible and maladaptive behavior when such behavior places high demands on the generation, recombination, and flexible use of information. This is seen in abilities as diverse as memory, navigation, exploration, imagination, creativity, decision-making, character judgments, establishing and maintaining social bonds, empathy, social discourse, and language use. Thus, the hippocampus, together with its extensive interconnections with other neural systems, supports the flexible use of information in general. Further, we suggest that this understanding has important clinical implications. Hippocampal abnormalities can produce profound deficits in real-world situations, which typically place high demands on the flexible use of information, but are not always obvious on diagnostic tools tuned to frontal lobe function. This review documents the role of the hippocampus in supporting flexible representations and aims to expand our understanding of the dynamic networks that operate as we move through and create meaning of our world.

The role of the hippocampus in flexible cognition and social behavior.

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Rubin, Rachael D; Watson, Patrick D; Duff, Melissa C; Cohen, Neal J

2014-01-01

Successful behavior requires actively acquiring and representing information about the environment and people, and manipulating and using those acquired representations flexibly to optimally act in and on the world. The frontal lobes have figured prominently in most accounts of flexible or goal-directed behavior, as evidenced by often-reported behavioral inflexibility in individuals with frontal lobe dysfunction. Here, we propose that the hippocampus also plays a critical role by forming and reconstructing relational memory representations that underlie flexible cognition and social behavior. There is mounting evidence that damage to the hippocampus can produce inflexible and maladaptive behavior when such behavior places high demands on the generation, recombination, and flexible use of information. This is seen in abilities as diverse as memory, navigation, exploration, imagination, creativity, decision-making, character judgments, establishing and maintaining social bonds, empathy, social discourse, and language use. Thus, the hippocampus, together with its extensive interconnections with other neural systems, supports the flexible use of information in general. Further, we suggest that this understanding has important clinical implications. Hippocampal abnormalities can produce profound deficits in real-world situations, which typically place high demands on the flexible use of information, but are not always obvious on diagnostic tools tuned to frontal lobe function. This review documents the role of the hippocampus in supporting flexible representations and aims to expand our understanding of the dynamic networks that operate as we move through and create meaning of our world.

Newcomer adjustment: Examining the role of managers' perception of newcomer proactive behavior during organizational socialization.

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Ellis, Allison M; Nifadkar, Sushil S; Bauer, Talya N; Erdogan, Berrin

2017-06-01

Separate streams of organizational socialization research have recognized the importance of (a) newcomer proactivity and (b) manager support in facilitating newcomer adjustment. However, extant research has largely focused on the newcomers' experience, leaving the perspectives of managers during socialization relatively unexplored-a theoretical gap that has implications both for newcomer adjustment and manager-newcomer interactions that may serve as a basis for future relationship development. Drawing from the "interlocked" employee behavior argument of Weick (1979), we propose that managers' perception of newcomers' proactive behaviors are associated with concordant manager behaviors, which, in turn, support newcomer adjustment. Further, we investigate a cognitive mechanism-managers' evaluation of newcomers' commitment to adjust-which we expect underlies the proposed relationship between newcomers' proactive behaviors and managers' supportive behaviors. Using a time-lagged, 4-phase data collection of a sample of new software engineers in India and their managers, we were able to test our hypothesized model as well as rule out alternative explanations via multilevel structural equation modeling. Results broadly supported our model even after controlling for manager-newcomer social exchange relationship, proactive personalities of both newcomers and managers, and potential effects of coworker information providing. The implications of our findings for theory and practice are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

The structure of social exchange in self-help support groups: development of a measure.

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Brown, Louis D; Tang, Xiaohui; Hollman, Ruth L

2014-03-01

Self-help support groups are indigenous community resources designed to help people manage a variety of personal challenges, from alcohol abuse to xeroderma pigmentosum. The social exchanges that occur during group meetings are central to understanding how people benefit from participation. This paper examines the different types of social exchange behaviors that occur during meetings, using two studies to develop empirically distinct scales that reliably measure theoretically important types of exchange. Resource theory informed the initial measurement development efforts. Exploratory factor analyses from the first study led to revisions in the factor structure of the social exchange scales. The revised measure captured the exchange of emotional support, experiential information, humor, unwanted behaviors, and exchanges outside meetings. Confirmatory factor analyses from a follow-up study with a different sample of self-help support groups provided good model fit, suggesting the revised structure accurately represented the data. Further, the scales demonstrated good convergent and discriminant validity with related constructs. Future research can use the scales to identify aspects of social exchange that are most important in improving health outcomes among self-help support group participants. Groups can use the scales in practice to celebrate strengths and address weaknesses in their social exchange dynamics.

[Social support after traumatism].

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Maercker, A; Heim, E; Hecker, T; Thoma, M V

2017-01-01

The classical concept of social support has recently become of relevance again, particularly in the context of traumatized patient groups, which include refugees and migrants. This article summarizes the evidence from social support research, e. g. different types of positive effects as well as context, gender and cultural aspects. These aspects are highlighted by means of studies stemming from applied healthcare research and thus describe a wide range of health effects, e.g. increased well-being and reduced depressive symptoms, improved functional abilities, better immune status and longevity. Two new trauma-specific differentiations of the social support concept are introduced: societal acknowledgement as a trauma survivor and disclosure of traumatic experiences. Against this background several implications for working with refugees arise: promotion of self-efficacy and posttraumatic maturation as well as the treatment of mental disorders show considerable benefits from focusing on social support. Finally, possibilities emerging from digital communication media are discussed, which are particularly relevant in this context.

The support of autonomy and the control of behavior.

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Deci, E L; Ryan, R M

1987-12-01

In this article we suggest that events and contexts relevant to the initiation and regulation of intentional behavior can function either to support autonomy (i.e., to promote choice) or to control behavior (i.e., to pressure one toward specific outcomes). Research herein reviewed indicates that this distinction is relevant to specific external events and to general interpersonal contexts as well as to specific internal events and to general personality orientations. That is, the distinction is relevant whether one's analysis focuses on social psychological variables or on personality variables. The research review details those contextual and person factors that tend to promote autonomy and those that tend to control. Furthermore, it shows that autonomy support has generally been associated with more intrinsic motivation, greater interest, less pressure and tension, more creativity, more cognitive flexibility, better conceptual learning, a more positive emotional tone, higher self-esteem, more trust, greater persistence of behavior change, and better physical and psychological health than has control. Also, these results have converged across different assessment procedures, different research methods, and different subject populations. On the basis of these results, we present an organismic perspective in which we argue that the regulation of intentional behavior varies along a continuum from autonomous (i.e., self-determined) to controlled. The relation of this organismic perspective to historical developments in empirical psychology is discussed, with a particular emphasis on its implications for the study of social psychology and personality.

Influence of perceived social support on health and socio-economic differences in social support in adolescents

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gecková, A.; Pudelsky, M.; van Dijk, J.P.

2001-01-01

The influence of perceived social support on health and socio-economic differences in social support were investigated in sample of adolescents (n = 2616, including 1370 boys, mean age 15 years). The perceived social support was studied in five spheres: school, interpersonal relations, serious

Observing preschoolers' social-emotional behavior: structure, foundations, and prediction of early school success.

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Denham, Susanne A; Bassett, Hideko Hamada; Thayer, Sara K; Mincic, Melissa S; Sirotkin, Yana S; Zinsser, Katherine

2012-01-01

Social-emotional behavior of 352 3- and 4-year-olds attending private child-care and Head Start programs was observed using the Minnesota Preschool Affect Checklist, Revised (MPAC-R). Goals of the investigation included (a) using MPAC-R data to extract a shortened version, MPAC-R/S, comparing structure, internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and stability of both versions; and, using the shortened measure, to examine (b) age, gender, and risk status differences in social-emotional behaviors; (c) contributions of emotion knowledge and executive function to social-emotional behaviors; and (d) contributions of social-emotional behaviors to early school adjustment and kindergarten academic success. Results show that reliability of MPAC-R/S was as good, or better, than the MPAC-R. MPAC-R/S structure, at both times of observation, included emotionally negative/aggressive, emotionally regulated/prosocial, and emotionally positive/productive behaviors; MPAC-R structure was similar but less replicable over time. Age, gender, and risk differences were found. Children's emotion knowledge contributed to later emotionally regulated/prosocial behavior. Finally, preschool emotionally negative/aggressive behaviors were associated with concurrent and kindergarten school success, and there was evidence of social-emotional behavior mediating relations between emotion knowledge or executive function, and school outcomes. The importance of portable, empirically supported observation measures of social-emotional behaviors is discussed along with possible applications, teacher utilization, and implementation barriers.

Role of social support in adolescent suicidal ideation and suicide attempts.

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Miller, Adam Bryant; Esposito-Smythers, Christianne; Leichtweis, Richard N

2015-03-01

The present study examined the relative contributions of perceptions of social support from parents, close friends, and school on current suicidal ideation (SI) and suicide attempt (SA) history in a clinical sample of adolescents. Participants were 143 adolescents (64% female; 81% white; range, 12-18 years; M = 15.38; standard deviation = 1.43) admitted to a partial hospitalization program. Data were collected with well-validated assessments and a structured clinical interview. Main and interactive effects of perceptions of social support on SI were tested with linear regression. Main and interactive effects of social support on the odds of SA were tested with logistic regression. Results from the linear regression analysis revealed that perceptions of lower school support independently predicted greater severity of SI, accounting for parent and close friend support. Further, the relationship between lower perceived school support and SI was the strongest among those who perceived lower versus higher parental support. Results from the logistic regression analysis revealed that perceptions of lower parental support independently predicted SA history, accounting for school and close friend support. Further, those who perceived lower support from school and close friends reported the greatest odds of an SA history. Results address a significant gap in the social support and suicide literature by demonstrating that perceptions of parent and school support are relatively more important than peer support in understanding suicidal thoughts and history of suicidal behavior. Results suggest that improving social support across these domains may be important in suicide prevention efforts. Copyright © 2015 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Why and when social support predicts older adults' pain-related disability: a longitudinal study.

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Matos, Marta; Bernardes, Sónia F; Goubert, Liesbet

2017-10-01

Pain-related social support has been shown to be directly associated with pain-related disability, depending on whether it promotes functional autonomy or dependence. However, previous studies mostly relied on cross-sectional methods, precluding conclusions on the temporal relationship between pain-related social support and disability. Also, research on the behavioral and psychological processes that account for such a relationship is scarce. Therefore, this study aimed at investigating the following longitudinally: (1) direct effects of social support for functional autonomy/dependence on pain-related disability, (2) mediating role of physical functioning, pain-related self-efficacy, and fear, and (3) whether pain duration and pain intensity moderate such mediating processes. A total of 168 older adults (Mage = 78.3; SDage = 8.7) participated in a 3-month prospective design, with 3 moments of measurement, with a 6-week lag between them. Participants completed the Formal Social Support for Autonomy and Dependence in Pain Inventory, the Brief Pain Inventory, the 36-SF Health Survey, behavioral tasks from the Senior Fitness Test, the Pain Self-Efficacy Questionnaire, and the Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia. Moderated mediation analyses showed that formal social support for functional dependence (T1) predicted an increase in pain-related disability (T3), that was mediated by self-reported physical functioning (T2) and by pain-related self-efficacy (T2) at short to moderate pain duration and at low to moderate pain intensity, but not at higher levels. Findings emphasized that social support for functional dependence is a risk factor for pain-related disability and uncovered the "why" and "when" of this relationship. Implications for the design of social support interventions aiming at promoting older adults' healthy aging despite chronic pain are drawn.

Social Support as a Mediator between Internalized Stigma and Coping Behaviors of Individuals with Substance Abuse Issues

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Chou, Chih-Chin; Robb, Jayci Lynn; Clay, Matthew Christopher; Chronister, Julie Ann

2013-01-01

In this study, 51 individuals from online substance abuse support groups were surveyed to investigate the mediating role of social support on the relationship between internalized stigma and coping. Regression and bootstrapping were conducted to perform mediation analysis. Findings suggest that social support mediates the negative impact of…

A Case Study of Positive Behavior Supports-Based Interventions in a Seventh-Grade Urban Classroom

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Hollingshead, Aleksandra; Kroeger, Stephen D.; Altus, Jillian; Trytten, Joyce Brubaker

2016-01-01

Struggling with frequent off-task behavior, a teacher in a midwestern inner-city high school requested assistance in her social studies classroom. A study was designed to investigate if a combination of positive behavior supports-based interventions such as behavior-specific praise and reduced teacher reprimands might improve on-task behavior. A…

Social support, stress and the aging brain.

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Sherman, Stephanie M; Cheng, Yen-Pi; Fingerman, Karen L; Schnyer, David M

2016-07-01

Social support benefits health and well-being in older individuals, however the mechanism remains poorly understood. One proposal, the stress-buffering hypothesis states social support 'buffers' the effects of stress on health. Alternatively, the main effect hypothesis suggests social support independently promotes health. We examined the combined association of social support and stress on the aging brain. Forty healthy older adults completed stress questionnaires, a social network interview and structural MRI to investigate the amygdala-medial prefrontal cortex circuitry, which is implicated in social and emotional processing and negatively affected by stress. Social support was positively correlated with right medial prefrontal cortical thickness while amygdala volume was negatively associated with social support and positively related to stress. We examined whether the association between social support and amygdala volume varied across stress level. Stress and social support uniquely contribute to amygdala volume, which is consistent with the health benefits of social support being independent of stress. © The Author (2015). Published by Oxford University Press. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Gaming machine addiction: the role of avoidance, accessibility and social support.

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, Anna C; Allen, Felicity L; Phillips, James; Karantzas, Gery

2011-12-01

Commonality in etiology and clinical expression plus high comorbidity between pathological gambling and substance use disorders suggest common underlying motives. It is important to understand common motivators and differentiating factors. An overarching framework of addiction was used to examine predictors of problem gambling in current electronic gaming machine (EGM) gamblers. Path analysis was used to examine the relationships between antecedent factors (stressors, coping habits, social support), gambling motivations (avoidance, accessibility, social) and gambling behavior. Three hundred and forty seven (229 females: M = 29.20 years, SD = 14.93; 118 males: M = 29.64 years, SD = 12.49) people participated. Consistent with stress, coping and addiction theory, situational life stressors and general avoidance coping were positively related to avoidance-motivated gambling. In turn, avoidance-motivated gambling was positively related to EGM gambling frequency and problems. Consistent with exposure theory, life stressors were positively related to accessibility-motivated gambling, and accessibility-motivated gambling was positively related to EGM gambling frequency and gambling problems. These findings are consistent with other addiction research and suggest avoidance-motivated gambling is part of a more generalized pattern of avoidance coping with relative accessibility to EGM gambling explaining its choice as a method of avoidance. Findings also showed social support acted as a direct protective factor in relation to gambling frequency and problems and indirectly via avoidance and accessibility gambling motivations. Finally, life stressors were positively related to socially motivated gambling but this motivation was not related to either social support or gambling behavior suggesting it has little direct influence on gambling problems.

Clarifying Associations between Childhood Adversity, Social Support, Behavioral Factors, and Mental Health, Health, and Well-Being in Adulthood: A Population-Based Study

OpenAIRE

Sheikh, Mashhood Ahmed; Abelsen, Birgit; Olsen, Jan Abel

2016-01-01

Publisher's version, source: http://10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00727. Previous studies have shown that socio-demographic factors, childhood socioeconomic status (CSES), childhood traumatic experiences (CTEs), social support and behavioral factors are associated with health and well-being in adulthood. However, the relative importance of these factors for mental health, health, and well-being has not been studied. Moreover, the mechanisms by which CTEs affect mental health, health, and well-being i...

Handling newborn monkeys alters later exploratory, cognitive, and social behaviors.

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Simpson, Elizabeth A; Sclafani, Valentina; Paukner, Annika; Kaburu, Stefano S K; Suomi, Stephen J; Ferrari, Pier F

2017-08-18

Touch is one of the first senses to develop and one of the earliest modalities for infant-caregiver communication. While studies have explored the benefits of infant touch in terms of physical health and growth, the effects of social touch on infant behavior are relatively unexplored. Here, we investigated the influence of neonatal handling on a variety of domains, including memory, novelty seeking, and social interest, in infant monkeys (Macaca mulatta; n=48) from 2 to 12 weeks of age. Neonates were randomly assigned to receive extra holding, with or without accompanying face-to-face interactions. Extra-handled infants, compared to standard-reared infants, exhibited less stress-related behavior and more locomotion around a novel environment, faster approach of novel objects, better working memory, and less fear towards a novel social partner. In sum, infants who received more tactile stimulation in the neonatal period subsequently demonstrated more advanced motor, social, and cognitive skills-particularly in contexts involving exploration of novelty-in the first three months of life. These data suggest that social touch may support behavioral development, offering promising possibilities for designing future early interventions, particularly for infants who are at heightened risk for social disorders. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Adapting Behavioral Interventions for Social Media Delivery

Science.gov (United States)

Waring, Molly E; May, Christine N; Ding, Eric Y; Kunz, Werner H; Hayes, Rashelle; Oleski, Jessica L

2016-01-01

Patients are increasingly using online social networks (ie, social media) to connect with other patients and health care professionals—a trend called peer-to-peer health care. Because online social networks provide a means for health care professionals to communicate with patients, and for patients to communicate with each other, an opportunity exists to use social media as a modality to deliver behavioral interventions. Social media-delivered behavioral interventions have the potential to reduce the expense of behavioral interventions by eliminating visits, as well as increase our access to patients by becoming embedded in their social media feeds. Trials of online social network-delivered behavioral interventions have shown promise, but much is unknown about intervention development and methodology. In this paper, we discuss the process by which investigators can translate behavioral interventions for social media delivery. We present a model that describes the steps and decision points in this process, including the necessary training and reporting requirements. We also discuss issues pertinent to social media-delivered interventions, including cost, scalability, and privacy. Finally, we identify areas of research that are needed to optimize this emerging behavioral intervention modality. PMID:26825969

Adapting Behavioral Interventions for Social Media Delivery.

Science.gov (United States)

Pagoto, Sherry; Waring, Molly E; May, Christine N; Ding, Eric Y; Kunz, Werner H; Hayes, Rashelle; Oleski, Jessica L

2016-01-29

Patients are increasingly using online social networks (ie, social media) to connect with other patients and health care professionals--a trend called peer-to-peer health care. Because online social networks provide a means for health care professionals to communicate with patients, and for patients to communicate with each other, an opportunity exists to use social media as a modality to deliver behavioral interventions. Social media-delivered behavioral interventions have the potential to reduce the expense of behavioral interventions by eliminating visits, as well as increase our access to patients by becoming embedded in their social media feeds. Trials of online social network-delivered behavioral interventions have shown promise, but much is unknown about intervention development and methodology. In this paper, we discuss the process by which investigators can translate behavioral interventions for social media delivery. We present a model that describes the steps and decision points in this process, including the necessary training and reporting requirements. We also discuss issues pertinent to social media-delivered interventions, including cost, scalability, and privacy. Finally, we identify areas of research that are needed to optimize this emerging behavioral intervention modality.

Social Support and HIV Risks Among Migrant and Non-Migrant Market Workers in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

Science.gov (United States)

Mergenova, Gaukhar; Shaw, Stacey A; Terlikbayeva, Assel; Gilbert, Louisa; Gensburg, Lenore; Primbetova, Sholpan; El-Bassel, Nabila

2017-08-01

Migration processes are listed within the primary factors facilitating the heterosexual spread of HIV. The study examines the relationship between social support, sexual HIV risk behaviors and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among 1342 male migrant and non-migrant market workers from Barakholka Market in Almaty, Kazakhstan. (1) higher level of perceived social support [Enhancing Recovery in Coronary Heart Disease (ENRICHD) Social Support Instrument (ESSI score)] was associated with a lower likelihood of having sex with a female sex worker (FSW) [OR = 0.952 (0.927, 0.978) p social support factors should be considered as a component of HIV and STI prevention programs for male migrant workers from Central Asia in Kazakhstan.

Social isolation induces behavioral and neuroendocrine disturbances relevant to depression in female and male prairie voles

OpenAIRE

Grippo, Angela J.; Gerena, Davida; Huang, Jonathan; Kumar, Narmda; Shah, Maulin; Ughreja, Raj; Carter, C. Sue

2007-01-01

Supportive social interactions may be protective against stressors and certain mental and physical illness, while social isolation may be a powerful stressor. Prairie voles are socially monogamous rodents that model some of the behavioral and physiological traits displayed by humans, including sensitivity to social isolation. Neuroendocrine and behavioral parameters, selected for their relevance to stress and depression, were measured in adult female and male prairie voles following 4 weeks o...

Supportive relationships and sexual risk behavior in adolescence: an ecological-transactional approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Henrich, Christopher C; Brookmeyer, Kathryn A; Shrier, Lydia A; Shahar, Golan

2006-04-01

To examine the longitudinal associations between supportive relationships with friends and parents and sexual risk behavior in adolescence based on an ecological-transactional perspective. Analyses were conducted on 2,652 sexually active adolescents from the first two waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). African-American adolescents had lower risk for sexual risk behavior. Supportive friendships and parent connectedness interacted in predicting decreased likelihood of sexual risk behavior. Mother-child communication about sex contributed to decreased likelihood of sexual risk only for girls. There were also small reciprocal effects of sexual risk behavior on decreased relationship quality over time. To better understand the parents' role in adolescent sexual risk behavior, multiple facets of parenting, the social contexts of parenting and adolescents' peers, and the effects of adolescents' behavior on these relationships should be taken into consideration.

[Regulation of Positive and Negative Emotions as Mediator between Maternal Emotion Socialization and Child Problem Behavior].

Science.gov (United States)

Fäsche, Anika; Gunzenhauser, Catherine; Friedlmeier, Wolfgang; von Suchodoletz, Antje

2015-01-01

The present study investigated five to six year old children's ability to regulate negative and positive emotions in relation to psychosocial problem behavior (N=53). It was explored, whether mothers' supportive and nonsupportive strategies of emotion socialization influence children's problem behavior by shaping their emotion regulation ability. Mothers reported on children's emotion regulation and internalizing and externalizing problem behavior via questionnaire, and were interviewed about their preferences for socialization strategies in response to children's expression of negative affect. Results showed that children with more adaptive expression of adequate positive emotions had less internalizing behavior problems. When children showed more control of inadequate negative emotions, children were less internalizing as well as externalizing in their behavior. Furthermore, results indicated indirect relations of mothers' socialization strategies with children's problem behavior. Control of inadequate negative emotions mediated the link between non-supportive strategies on externalizing problem behavior. Results suggest that emotion regulatory processes should be part of interventions to reduce the development of problematic behavior in young children. Parents should be trained in dealing with children's emotions in a constructive way.

Peer social support training in UK prisons.

Science.gov (United States)

Stewart, Warren; Lovely, Rachel

2017-10-11

To undertake a service evaluation to assess the effect of peer social support training using two separate learning programmes, which were designed to assist prisoners to support older prisoners and prisoners with disabilities. The service evaluation used an action research approach to support planning, delivery and data collection. Eleven interviews with nine prisoners who had undertaken the peer social support training programmes and two members of prison staff (one nurse manager and one prison officer) were recorded and transcribed by the researchers. This data was coded and thematically analysed to evaluate the findings. Recommendations were made regarding the format and content of the training. The training was well received by the peer social support worker trainees and had several positive outcomes, including increased peer social support, improved relationships between peer social support workers and older prisoners and prisoners with disabilities, increased self-esteem, measured as 'social capital', among peer social support workers, and effective teamworking. The peer social support training programmes were considered to be a positive intervention and were effective in supporting peer social support roles. Recommendations for future training of prisoner peer support workers include involving existing peer social support workers in training and recruitment, and enhancing the role of peer social support workers in prisons by providing them with job descriptions. ©2012 RCN Publishing Company Ltd. All rights reserved. Not to be copied, transmitted or recorded in any way, in whole or part, without prior permission of the publishers.

Effects of chronic social stress and maternal intranasal oxytocin and vasopressin on offspring interferon γ and behavior

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chris Anthony Murgatroyd

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Recent studies support the hypothesis that the adverse effects of early life adversity and transgenerational stress on neural plasticity and behavior are mediated by inflammation. The objective of the present study was to investigate the immune and behavioural programming effects of intranasal (IN vasopressin (AVP and oxytocin (OXT treatment of chronic social stress (CSS exposed F1 dams on F2 juvenile female offspring. It was hypothesized that maternal AVP and OXT treatment would have preventative effects on social stress induced deficits in offspring anxiety and social behavior, and that these effects would be associated with changes in interferon γ (IFNγ. Control and CSS exposed F1 dams were administered IN saline, AVP, or OXT during lactation and the F2 juvenile female offspring were assessed for basal plasma IFNγ and perseverative, anxiety, and social behavior. CSS F2 female juvenile offspring had elevated IFNγ levels and exhibited increased repetitive/perseverative and anxiety behaviours and deficits in social behavior. These effects were modulated by AVP and OXT in a context and behavior dependent manner, with OXT exhibiting preventative effects on repetitive and anxiety behaviours and AVP possessing preventative effects on social behavior deficits and anxiety. Basal IFNγ levels were elevated in the F2 offspring of OXT treated F1 dams, but IFNγ was not correlated with the behavioural effects. These results support the hypothesis that maternal AVP and OXT treatment have context and behavior specific effects on peripheral IFNγ levels and perseverative, anxiety, and social behaviours in the female offspring of early life social stress exposed dams. Both maternal AVP and OXT are effective at preventing social stress induced increases in self-directed measures of anxiety, and AVP is particularly effective at preventing impairments in overall social contact. Oxytocin is specifically effective at preventing repetitive

Work and marital status in relation to depressive symptoms and social support among women with coronary artery disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Blom, May; Georgiades, Anastasia; László, Krisztina D; Alinaghizadeh, Hassan; Janszky, Imre; Ahnve, Staffan

2007-11-01

Work and marital status have been shown to be associated with health outcome in women. However, the effect of employment and marriage on psychosocial functioning has been studied predominantly in healthy subjects. We investigated whether work and marital status are associated with depressive symptoms, social support, and daily stress behavior in women with coronary artery disease (CAD). Data of 105 women with CAD and of working age were analyzed. General linear models were used to determine the association between work and marital status and depressive symptoms, social support, and daily stress behavior. Women who were working at the time of measurement had lower levels of depressive symptoms (7.0 +/- 1.2 vs. 12.1 +/- 0.9, p marital status was not related to any of the outcome variables. Results were similar after adjusting for potential confounders, that is, age, education, self-reported health, and risk factors for CAD. There was no significant interaction between marital status and working status on depressive symptoms, social support, or daily stress behavior. In women with CAD, all working had lower levels of depressive symptoms and a better social integration than those not working, regardless of reason for being nonemployed. Daily stress behavior, depression, and social support did not differ between cohabiting and not cohabiting women. Future interventions should take into consideration that women with CAD who are unemployed may have a higher risk for depression and social isolation and, therefore, poor clinical outcomes.

The Impact of Formal Hierarchies on Enterprise Social Networking Behavior

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Behrendt, Sebastian; Klier, Julia; Klier, Mathias

2015-01-01

With more and more companies using enterprise social networks (ESN) for employee communication and collaboration, the influence of ESN on organizational hierarchies has been subject of countless discussions in practice-oriented media and first academic studies. Conversely, the question whether...... and how formal organizational hierarchies influence ESN usage behavior has not yet been addressed. Drawing on a rich data set comprising 2.5 years of relationship building via direct messages, confirmed contact requests, and group messages, we are able to show that formal hierarchies have an important...... impact on social networking behavior. By applying means of social network analysis and supported by statements from interviews, we illustrate how deeply formal hierarchy impacts the three examined types of relationships. Our results motivate academics to further study the interrelation between hierarchy...

Behavioral analysis of use personal service e-balance Indonesian social security

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Gunawan; Fitriani, Novi; Nurul Fajar, Ahmad

2017-09-01

Indonesian Social Security is the one of the government agencies that is trusted to organize social security. With help of Information technology that growing these day, Indonesian Social Security is also developing E-Balance application, where previously all activities for checking balance is done by giving their slip details through the nearest branch to be distributed to each company. So far there is no research that reviewing e-Balance. Hence, the authors is interested to do research related factors that influence the behavior of the use of E-Balance Indonesian Social Security in the Jakarta area and model that can describe those factors Authors distributing questioners to 193 respondents and perform data processing. The result of this study is to know the factors that influence the behavior of use Personal Service E-Balance Indonesian Social Security and model that can describe those factors. The result shows that UTAUT 2 model is not match with this research and need to be enhanced. After enhancement, there are 3 factors that being significant. Such as Behavioral Intention, Effort Expectancy and Social Influence while the others are not supported and need to be customize.

Social Support and Social Conflict as Predictors of Prenatal Depression

Science.gov (United States)

Westdahl, Claire; Milan, Stephanie; Magriples, Urania; Kershaw, Trace S.; Rising, Sharon Schindler; Ickovics, Jeannette R.

2008-01-01

OBJECTIVE To estimate how social support and social conflict relate to prenatal depressive symptoms and to generate a brief clinical tool to identify women at increased psychosocial risk. METHODS This is a prospective study following 1,047 pregnant women receiving care at two university-affiliated clinics from early pregnancy through 1 year postpartum. Structured interviews were conducted in the second trimester of pregnancy. Hierarchical and logistic regressions were used to examine potential direct and interactive effects of social support and conflict on prenatal depressive symptoms measured by the Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale. RESULTS Thirty-three percent of the sample reported elevated levels of depressive symptoms predicted from sociodemographic factors, social support, and social conflict. Social support and conflict had independent effects on depressive symptoms although social conflict was a stronger predictor. There was a “dose–response,” with each increase in interpersonal risk factor resulting in consequent risk for probable depression based on symptom reports (Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Scale greater than or equal to 16). A composite of one social support and three conflict items were identified to be used by clinicians to identify interpersonal risk factors for depression in pregnancy. Seventy-six percent of women with a composite score of three or more high-risk responses reported depressive symptoms. CONCLUSION Increased assessment of social support and social conflict by clinicians during pregnancy can identify women who could benefit from group or individual interventions to enhance supportive and reduce negative social interactions. PMID:17601908

Social Support and Social Networks in COPD: A Scoping Review.

Science.gov (United States)

Barton, Christopher; Effing, Tanya W; Cafarella, Paul

2015-01-01

A scoping review was conducted to determine the size and nature of the evidence describing associations between social support and networks on health, management and clinical outcomes amongst patients with COPD. Searches of PubMed, PsychInfo and CINAHL were undertaken for the period 1966-December 2013. A descriptive synthesis of the main findings was undertaken to demonstrate where there is current evidence for associations between social support, networks and health outcomes, and where further research is needed. The search yielded 318 papers of which 287 were excluded after applying selection criteria. Two areas emerged in which there was consistent evidence of benefit of social support; namely mental health and self-efficacy. There was inconsistent evidence for a relationship between perceived social support and quality of life, physical functioning and self-rated health. Hospital readmission was not associated with level of perceived social support. Only a small number of studies (3 articles) have reported on the social network of individuals with COPD. There remains a need to identify the factors that promote and enable social support. In particular, there is a need to further understand the characteristics of social networks within the broader social structural conditions in which COPD patients live and manage their illness.

Neighborhood Influences on Perceived Social Support Among Parents: Findings from the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods

Science.gov (United States)

Tendulkar, Shalini A.; Koenen, Karestan C.; Dunn, Erin C.; Buka, Stephen; Subramanian, S. V.

2012-01-01

Background Social support is frequently linked to positive parenting behavior. Similarly, studies increasingly show a link between neighborhood residential environment and positive parenting behavior. However, less is known about how the residential environment influences parental social support. To address this gap, we examine the relationship between neighborhood concentrated disadvantage and collective efficacy and the level and change in parental caregiver perceptions of non-familial social support. Methodology/Principal Findings The data for this study came from three data sources, the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN) Study's Longitudinal Cohort Survey of caregivers and their offspring, a Community Survey of adult residents in these same neighborhoods and the 1990 Census. Social support is measured at Wave 1 and Wave 3 and neighborhood characteristics are measured at Wave 1. Multilevel linear regression models are fit. The results show that neighborhood collective efficacy is a significant (ß = .04; SE = .02; p = .03), predictor of the positive change in perceived social support over a 7 year period, however, not of the level of social support, adjusting for key compositional variables and neighborhood concentrated disadvantage. In contrast concentrated neighborhood disadvantage is not a significant predictor of either the level or change in social support. Conclusion Our finding suggests that neighborhood collective efficacy may be important for inducing the perception of support from friends in parental caregivers over time. PMID:22493683

Neighborhood influences on perceived social support among parents: findings from the project on human development in Chicago neighborhoods.

Science.gov (United States)

Tendulkar, Shalini A; Koenen, Karestan C; Dunn, Erin C; Buka, Stephen; Subramanian, S V

2012-01-01

Social support is frequently linked to positive parenting behavior. Similarly, studies increasingly show a link between neighborhood residential environment and positive parenting behavior. However, less is known about how the residential environment influences parental social support. To address this gap, we examine the relationship between neighborhood concentrated disadvantage and collective efficacy and the level and change in parental caregiver perceptions of non-familial social support. The data for this study came from three data sources, the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN) Study's Longitudinal Cohort Survey of caregivers and their offspring, a Community Survey of adult residents in these same neighborhoods and the 1990 Census. Social support is measured at Wave 1 and Wave 3 and neighborhood characteristics are measured at Wave 1. Multilevel linear regression models are fit. The results show that neighborhood collective efficacy is a significant (ß = .04; SE = .02; p = .03), predictor of the positive change in perceived social support over a 7 year period, however, not of the level of social support, adjusting for key compositional variables and neighborhood concentrated disadvantage. In contrast concentrated neighborhood disadvantage is not a significant predictor of either the level or change in social support. Our finding suggests that neighborhood collective efficacy may be important for inducing the perception of support from friends in parental caregivers over time.

SOCIAL SUPPORT AND STRESS - THE ROLE OF SOCIAL-COMPARISON AND SOCIAL-EXCHANGE PROCESSES

NARCIS (Netherlands)

BUUNK, BP; HOORENS, [No Value

1992-01-01

This paper first presents four different conceptualizations of social support: social integration, satisfying relationships, perceived helpfulness and enacted support. Then, classic and contemporary social comparison theory and social exchange theory are analysed as they are two theoretical

Social support and bipolar disorder

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paula Mendonça Studart

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Background Bipolar disorder is a chronic condition that affects the functioning of its carriers in many different ways, even when treated properly. Therefore, it’s also important to identify the psychosocial aspects that could contribute to an improvement of this population’s quality of life.Objective Carry out a literature review on the role of social support in cases of bipolar disorder.Method A research on the following online databases PubMed, Lilacs and SciELO was conducted by using the keywords “social support” or “social networks” and “mood disorders” or “bipolar disorder” or “affective disorder,” with no defined timeline.Results Only 13 studies concerning the topic of social support and BD were found in the search for related articles. Generally speaking, the results show low rates of social support for BD patients.Discussion Despite the growing interest in the overall functioning of patients with bipolar disorder, studies on social support are still rare. Besides, the existing studies on the subject use different methodologies, making it difficult to establish data comparisons.

The "drinking-buddy" scale as a measure of para-social behavior.

Science.gov (United States)

Powell, Larry; Richmond, Virginia P; Cantrell-Williams, Glenda

2012-06-01

Para-social behavior is a form of quasi-interpersonal behavior that results when audience members develop bonds with media personalities that can resemble interpersonal social interaction, but is not usually applied to political communication. This study tested whether the "Drinking-Buddy" Scale, a simple question frequently used in political communication, could be interpreted as a single-item measure of para-social behavior with respect to political candidates in terms of image judgments related to interpersonal attraction and perceived similarity to self. The participants were college students who had voted in the 2008 election. They rated the candidates, Obama or McCain, as drinking buddies and then rated the candidates' perceived similarity to themselves in attitude and background, and also the social and task attraction to the candidate. If the drinking-buddy rating serves as a proxy measure for para-social behavior, then it was expected that participants' ratings for all four kinds of similarity to and attraction toward a candidate would be higher for the candidate they chose as a drinking buddy. The directional hypotheses were supported for interpersonal attraction, but not for perceived similarity. These results indicate that the drinking-buddy scale predicts ratings of interpersonal attraction, while voters may view perceived similarity as an important but not essential factor in their candidate preference.

Modern Social Support Structures: Online Social Networks and their Implications for Social Workers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kala Chakradhar

2009-03-01

Full Text Available Mapping and assessing social networks and the quality of their social support is a valuable intervention strategy for social workers. These networks have now spread onto the digital realm in the form of Online Social Networks (OSNs. This study investigated the nature of social support provided by such networks to their users in a rural mid-South University (USA and explored parallels with the current understanding of social support in conventional social networks. A web-based survey administered to college students revealed that users of these online networks were predominantly undergraduate first year students, female, single, unemployed and from a variety of academic disciplines. The examination of the components of OSNs appears to mirror those of offline networks. They also seem to complement the effects of each other while contributing to an individual's support system. The paper concludes with critical implications of such online social networking for University students and social workers in practice and education.

The dominance behavioral system and manic temperament: motivation for dominance, self-perceptions of power, and socially dominant behaviors.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Sheri L; Carver, Charles S

2012-12-15

The dominance behavioral system has been conceptualized as a biologically based system comprising motivation to achieve social power and self-perceptions of power. Biological, behavioral, and social correlates of dominance motivation and self-perceived power have been related to a range of psychopathological tendencies. Preliminary evidence suggests that mania and risk for mania (manic temperament) relate to the dominance system. Four studies examine whether manic temperament, measured with the Hypomanic Personality Scale (HPS), is related to elevations in dominance motivation, self-perceptions of power, and engagement in socially dominant behavior across multiple measures. In Study 1, the HPS correlated with measures of dominance motivation and the pursuit of extrinsically-oriented ambitions for fame and wealth among 454 undergraduates. In Study 2, the HPS correlated with perceptions of power and extrinsically-oriented lifetime ambitions among 780 undergraduates. In Study 3, the HPS was related to trait-like tendencies to experience hubristic (dominance-related) pride, as well as dominance motivation and pursuit of extrinsically-oriented ambitions. In Study 4, we developed the Socially Dominant Behavior Scale to capture behaviors reflecting high power. The scale correlated highly with the HPS among 514 undergraduates. The studies rely on self-ratings of manic temperament and dominance constructs, and findings have not yet been generalized to a clinical sample. Taken together, results support the hypothesis that manic temperament is related to a focus on achieving social dominance, ambitions related to achieving social recognition, perceptions of having achieved power, tendencies to experience dominance-related pride, and engagement in social behaviors consistent with this elevated sense of power. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

INTERNET DEPENDENCE IN CHINESE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS: RELATIONSHIP WITH SEX, SELF-ESTEEM, AND SOCIAL SUPPORT.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Ruiping

2015-08-01

This cross-sectional study investigated the relationships among self-esteem, social support, and Internet dependence. A sample of young people aged between 15 and 18 years old (M age = 16.3 yr., SD = 0.7; 470 boys, 441 girls) completed measures of the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, the Perceived Social Support Scale, and the Internet Dependence Test. According to the cognitive-behavioral model of problematic Internet use, social support should mediate the relationship between self-esteem and Internet dependence. Furthermore, based on previous research it was predicted that boys would score higher on Internet dependence than women. Support for this model was obtained. Internet dependent students were more likely to be boys. Self-esteem and social support were negatively correlated with Internet dependence. The relationship between self-esteem and Internet dependence was mediated by social support. Although the effect sizes were small, the findings of the present study are of significance in investigating adolescents' Internet dependence.

Stress and social support in caregivers of children with cerebral palsy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alyne Kalyane Câmara de Oliveira

2013-12-01

Full Text Available In this study, we aimed to describe the levels of stress and perceived social support for caregivers of children with cerebral palsy (CP, as well as investigate the relationship between stress, social support, and variables related to caregivers, the environment and children, namely: the number of children, education level of caregivers, family income, behavior, and the child’s motor level. This study comprised 50 children with CP between 3 and 7.5 years old, their 50 caregivers, and 25 rehabilitation professionals who care for children in health institutions from the countryside of São Paulo state, Brazil. The following measuring instruments were used: the Gross Motor Function Classification System for Cerebral Palsy, the Lipp’s Inventory of Stress Symptoms in Adults, the Social Support Questionnaire, and a form identifying the participants. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics by the following tests: Chi-square, Fisher exact, Mann-Whitney, Kruskal-Wallis, and Odds Ratio. The results showed stress among the participating caregivers (66%, with predominance of the resistance phase (93.9% and psychological symptoms (69.7%, low perceived social support for caregivers, concomitant with an adequate satisfaction with the support received, as well as significant relationships of stress versus social support (p = 0.017 and education level versus social support (p = 0.037. The data allow analysis of the relationship between the variables investigated and about the impact of having a child with CP in the family regarding the physical, emotional and psychological well-being of caregivers, besides providing subsidies to think of strategies at different levels of care for families of children with disabilities.

Development and validation of an instrument to assess perceived social influence on health behaviors

Science.gov (United States)

HOLT, CHERYL L.; CLARK, EDDIE M.; ROTH, DAVID L.; CROWTHER, MARTHA; KOHLER, CONNIE; FOUAD, MONA; FOUSHEE, RUSTY; LEE, PATRICIA A.; SOUTHWARD, PENNY L.

2012-01-01

Assessment of social influence on health behavior is often approached through a situational context. The current study adapted an existing, theory-based instrument from another content domain to assess Perceived Social Influence on Health Behavior (PSI-HB) among African Americans, using an individual difference approach. The adapted instrument was found to have high internal reliability (α = .81–.84) and acceptable testretest reliability (r = .68–.85). A measurement model revealed a three-factor structure and supported the theoretical underpinnings. Scores were predictive of health behaviors, particularly among women. Future research using the new instrument may have applied value assessing social influence in the context of health interventions. PMID:20522506

Marijuana-related problems and social anxiety: the role of marijuana behaviors in social situations.

Science.gov (United States)

Buckner, Julia D; Heimberg, Richard G; Matthews, Russell A; Silgado, Jose

2012-03-01

Individuals with elevated social anxiety appear particularly vulnerable to marijuana-related problems. In fact, individuals with social anxiety may be more likely to experience marijuana-related impairment than individuals with other types of anxiety. It is therefore important to determine whether constructs particularly relevant to socially anxious individuals play a role in the expression of marijuana-related problems in this vulnerable population. Given that both social avoidance and using marijuana to cope with negative affect broadly have been found to play a role in marijuana-related problems, the current study utilized a new measure designed to simultaneously assess social avoidance and using marijuana to cope in situations previously identified as anxiety-provoking among those with elevated social anxiety. The Marijuana Use to Cope with Social Anxiety Scale (MCSAS) assessed behaviors regarding 24 social situations: marijuana use to cope in social situations (MCSAS-Cope) and avoidance of social situations if marijuana was unavailable. In Study 1, we found preliminary support for the convergent and discriminant validity and internal consistency of the MCSAS scales. In Study 2, we examined if MCSAS scores were related to marijuana problems among those with (n = 44) and without (n = 44) clinically elevated social anxiety. Individuals with clinically meaningful social anxiety were more likely to use marijuana to cope in social situations and to avoid social situations if marijuana was unavailable. Of importance, MCSAS-Cope uniquely mediated the relationship between social anxiety group status and marijuana-related problems. Results highlight the importance of contextual factors in assessing marijuana-related behaviors among high-risk populations. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved.

Social Capital and Bystander Behavior in Bullying: Internalizing Problems as a Barrier to Prosocial Intervention.

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Jenkins, Lyndsay N; Fredrick, Stephanie Secord

2017-04-01

Theory and research suggests that individuals with greater social capital (i.e., resources and benefits gained from relationships, experiences, and social interactions) may be more likely to be active, prosocial bystanders in bullying situations. Therefore, the goal of the current study was to examine the association of social capital (social support and social skills) with prosocial bystander behavior, and the role of internalizing problems as a potential barrier to this relation among 299 students (45.8% girls, 95% White) in sixth, seventh, and eighth grades. Results indicate a positive relation between social capital and prosocial bystander behavior. In addition, internalizing problems were a significant risk factor that may hinder youth-particularly girls-from engaging in defending behavior. Prosocial bystanders are an essential component to prevent and reduce bullying and further research is needed to better understand how to foster prosocial behavior in bullying situations, perhaps by utilizing social capital, related to school bullying.

Social Support and Its Impact on Ethnic Identity and HIV Risk among Migrant Workers.

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Shehadeh, Nancy; Rubens, Muni; Attonito, Jennifer; Jennings, Terri

2018-02-01

Migrant workers are disproportionately affected by HIV due to poverty, social isolation, lack of access to and availability of health care services, acculturation, language barriers, constant mobility, and lack of knowledge. This study examined the impact of changes in social support on ethnic identity and HIV risk behaviors among migrant workers in South Florida. For this study, baseline and 6-month follow-up data were collected from an HIV intervention study among migrant workers in South Florida (n = 270) who reported unprotected sex in the past 30 days. The Multigroup Identity Measure was used to assess ethnic identity and the Social Provisions Scale examined the degree to which respondents' social relationships provide various dimensions of social support. Social support was a significant predictor of ethnic identity and of ethnic identity subscales, ethnic identity belonging and ethnic identity explore. There were small but statistically significant short-term changes in ethnic identity and ethnic identity subscales among the migrant workers over the 6-month time period assessed after controlling for the intervention. Future studies should be conducted over a longer period of time to better assess this relationship and possible factors to reduce HIV risk behaviors. There is a need to focus on improving the quality of health and reduce HIV and other risks experienced by this marginalized community.

Social priming increases nonverbal expressive behaviors in schizophrenia.

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Jonathan Del-Monte

Full Text Available Semantic priming tasks are classically used to influence and implicitly promote target behaviors. Recently, several studies have demonstrated that prosocial semantic priming modulated feelings of social affiliation. The main aim of this study was to determine whether inducing feelings of social affiliation using priming tasks could modulate nonverbal social behaviors in schizophrenia. We used the Scrambled Sentence Task to prime schizophrenia patients according to three priming group conditions: pro-social, non-social or anti-social. Forty-five schizophrenia patients, diagnosed according to DSM-IV-TR, were randomly assigned to one of the three priming groups of 15 participants. We evaluated nonverbal social behaviors using the Motor-Affective subscale of the Motor-Affective-Social-Scale. Results showed that schizophrenia patients with pro-social priming had significantly more nonverbal behaviors than schizophrenia patients with anti-social and non-social priming conditions. Schizophrenia patient behaviors are affected by social priming. Our results have several clinical implications for the rehabilitation of social skills impairments frequently encountered among individuals with schizophrenia.

Stress, social behavior, and resilience: Insights from rodents

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Beery, Annaliese K.; Kaufer, Daniela

2014-01-01

The neurobiology of stress and the neurobiology of social behavior are deeply intertwined. The social environment interacts with stress on almost every front: social interactions can be potent stressors; they can buffer the response to an external stressor; and social behavior often changes in response to stressful life experience. This review explores mechanistic and behavioral links between stress, anxiety, resilience, and social behavior in rodents, with particular attention to different social contexts. We consider variation between several different rodent species and make connections to research on humans and non-human primates. PMID:25562050

HIV-related behaviors, social support and health-related quality of life among men who have sex with men and women (MSMW): a cross-sectional study in Chongqing, China.

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Chen, Jiang-Peng; Han, Ming-Ming; Liao, Zi-Jun; Dai, Zhen-Zhen; Liu, Liang; Chen, Hua; Wen, Xiao-Yan; Hu, Shan; Que, Ping; Wen, Wen; Peng, Bin

2015-01-01

Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) has become commonly used both as a concept and as a field of research. However, little is known about the HRQOL of men who have sex with men and women (MSMW). The aim of this study was to examine HIV-related behaviors, social support, and HRQOL status and explore its predictors among MSMW. An anonymous cross-sectional study was conducted by snowball sampling method in 2013. A total of 563 Chinese MSM completed a structured questionnaire. The HRQOL and social support were measured with the Chinese version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale (WHOQOL-BRFE) and the Social Support Rating Scale (SSRS), respectively. Of the 563 MSM analyzed, 77 (13.68%) were MSMW who had a higher proportion of in-marriage and preference for an insertive role as compared with the men who have sex with men only (MSMO) (Ppaid to those with low social support, low-income, the old and those prefer a receptive role during anal sex populations.

Social Information Processing in Preschool Children: Relations to Sociodemographic Risk and Problem Behavior

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Ziv, Yair; Sorongon, Alberto

2011-01-01

Using a multicomponent, process-oriented approach, the links between social information processing during the preschool years and (a) sociodemographic risk and (b) behavior problems in preschool were examined in a community sample of 196 children. Findings provided support for our initial hypotheses that aspects of social information processing in…

Phylogenetic analyses of behavior support existence of culture among wild chimpanzees.

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Lycett, Stephen J; Collard, Mark; McGrew, William C

2007-11-06

Culture has long been considered to be not only unique to humans, but also responsible for making us qualitatively different from all other forms of life. In recent years, however, researchers studying chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) have challenged this idea. Natural populations of chimpanzees have been found to vary greatly in their behavior. Because many of these interpopulation differences cannot be readily explained by ecological factors, it has been argued that they result from social learning and, therefore, can be regarded as cultural variations. Recent studies showing social transmission in captive chimpanzee populations suggest that this hypothesis is plausible. However, the culture hypothesis has been questioned on the grounds that the behavioral variation may be explained at a proximate level by genetic differences between subspecies. Here we use cladistic analyses of the major cross-site behavioral data set to test the hypothesis that the behavioral differences among the best-documented chimpanzee populations are genetically determined. If behavioral diversity is primarily the product of genetic differences between subspecies, then population data should show less phylogenetic structure when data from a single subspecies (P. t. schweinfurthii) are compared with data from two subspecies (P. t. verus and P. t. schweinfurthii) analyzed together. Our findings are inconsistent with the hypothesis that the observed behavioral patterns of wild chimpanzee populations can be explained primarily by genetic differences between subspecies. Instead, our results support the suggestion that the behavioral patterns are the product of social learning and, therefore, can be considered cultural.

Perceived Social Support among Mentally Ill Patients

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Bandana Pokharel

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Social support is the perception that one is cared for, has assistance available from significant others and its benefit is by buffering stress by influencing the ability to adjust and live with illness. Social support can uplift the quality and subjective wellbeing of people. The objective of this study was to examine the perceived social support and factors influencing it among mentally ill patients. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out. Ninety cases aged more than 18 years visiting outpatient of psychiatric department and diagnosed as a case of mental illness for at least a year were included. Instruments used were self-developed proforma and Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support. Interview technique was used to collect the data. Results: Majority (60% of the patients perceive social support from family, 28% of the patients perceive social support from significant others. Regression analysis showed that the perceived social support is influenced by employment status, type of family one lives in and physical illness. It is not influenced by gender, subjective financial status and frequency of hospitalization. Conclusion: Perceived social support is influenced by employment status, type of family one lives in and physical illness. Majority (60% of the patients perceive social support from family.

Relations between plasma oxytocin and cortisol: The stress buffering role of social support

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Robyn J. McQuaid

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Stress responses in humans can be attenuated by exogenous oxytocin administration, and these stress-buffering properties may be moderated by social factors. Yet, the influence of acute stressors on circulating endogenous oxytocin levels have been inconsistent, and limited information is available concerning the influence of social support in moderating this relationship. In the current investigation, undergraduate women (N = 67 were assessed in the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST with either social support available from a close female friend or no social support being available. An additional set of women served as controls. The TSST elicited marked elevations of state anxiety and negative emotions, which were largely attenuated among women who received social support. Furthermore, baseline oxytocin levels were inversely related to women's general feelings of distrust, as well as basal plasma cortisol levels. Despite these associations, oxytocin levels were unaffected by the TSST, and this was the case irrespective of oral contraceptive use or estrogen levels. In contrast, plasma cortisol elevations were elicited by the psychosocial stressor, but only in women using oral contraceptives, an effect that was prevented when social support was available. Taken together, these data provisionally suggest that changes in plasma oxytocin might not accompany the stress attenuating effects of social support on cortisol levels. Moreover, as plasma oxytocin might not reliably reflect brain oxytocin levels, the linkage between oxytocin and prosocial behaviors remains tenuous.

Childhood Social Anxiety and Social Support-Seeking: Distinctive Links with Perceived Support from Teachers

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Leeves, Sylvia; Banerjee, Robin

2014-01-01

Social support-seeking is recognised as an important strategy used by children to cope with negative emotions. However, there are important gaps in our knowledge about children's perceptions of different sources of social support, and the associations that these perceptions have with individual differences in socio-emotional functioning. The…

The association between motivation and fruit and vegetable intake: The moderating role of social support.

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McSpadden, Kate E; Patrick, Heather; Oh, April Y; Yaroch, Amy L; Dwyer, Laura A; Nebeling, Linda C

2016-01-01

Despite knowing that fruit and vegetable (FV) intake promotes health and well-being, few U.S. adults meet current guidelines. Thus, understanding people's motivation for FV intake is important for predicting dietary behavior. Applying self-determination theory, the goal of this study was to examine the role of social support as a potential moderator of the link between autonomous and controlled motivations and FV intake. Cross-sectional data from 2959 adults in the United States were analyzed. Autonomous motivation and perceived social support were positively associated with FV intake, while controlled motivation was negatively associated with FV intake. Additionally, there was evidence that the negative association between controlled motivation and FV intake was attenuated by higher levels of perceived social support. Findings suggest the need for a more comprehensive approach to understanding the role of motivation in health behaviors like FV intake and the potential roles played by friends and family in these motivational processes. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The association between motivation and fruit and vegetable intake: The moderating role of social support

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McSpadden, Kate E.; Patrick, Heather; Oh, April Y.; Yaroch, Amy L.; Dwyer, Laura A.; Nebeling, Linda C.

2015-01-01

Despite knowing that fruit and vegetable (FV) intake promotes health and well-being, few U.S. adults meet current guidelines. Thus, understanding people’s motivation for FV intake is important for predicting dietary behavior. Applying self-determination theory, the goal of this study was to examine the role of social support as a potential moderator of the link between autonomous and controlled motivations and FV intake. Cross-sectional data from 2,959 adults in the United States were analyzed. Autonomous motivation and perceived social support were positively associated with FV intake, while controlled motivation was negatively associated with FV intake. Additionally, there was evidence that the negative association between controlled motivation and FV intake was attenuated by higher levels of perceived social support. Findings suggest the need for a more comprehensive approach to understanding the role of motivation in health behaviors like FV intake and the potential roles played by friends and family in these motivational processes. PMID:26321416

Neighborhood influences on perceived social support among parents: findings from the project on human development in Chicago neighborhoods.

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Shalini A Tendulkar

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Social support is frequently linked to positive parenting behavior. Similarly, studies increasingly show a link between neighborhood residential environment and positive parenting behavior. However, less is known about how the residential environment influences parental social support. To address this gap, we examine the relationship between neighborhood concentrated disadvantage and collective efficacy and the level and change in parental caregiver perceptions of non-familial social support. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: The data for this study came from three data sources, the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN Study's Longitudinal Cohort Survey of caregivers and their offspring, a Community Survey of adult residents in these same neighborhoods and the 1990 Census. Social support is measured at Wave 1 and Wave 3 and neighborhood characteristics are measured at Wave 1. Multilevel linear regression models are fit. The results show that neighborhood collective efficacy is a significant (ß = .04; SE = .02; p = .03, predictor of the positive change in perceived social support over a 7 year period, however, not of the level of social support, adjusting for key compositional variables and neighborhood concentrated disadvantage. In contrast concentrated neighborhood disadvantage is not a significant predictor of either the level or change in social support. CONCLUSION: Our finding suggests that neighborhood collective efficacy may be important for inducing the perception of support from friends in parental caregivers over time.

[Effects of Group Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on Social Anxiety Disorders].

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Li, Yu-Chen; Meng, Ya-Jing; Yuan, Min-Lan; Zhu, Hong-Ru; Ren, Zheng-Jia; Qiu, Chang-Jian; Zhang, Wei

2017-11-01

To evaluate the effect of group cognitive behavioral therapy (GCBT) on social anxiety disorders (SAD). A total of 50 patients with SAD were recruited in this study. A survey containing the Liebowitz social anxiety scale (LSAS),the automatic thoughts questionnaire (ATQ),the fear of negative evaluation questionnaire (FNE),the social support rating scale (SSRS),the tridimensional personality questionnaire (TPQ),and the egna minnen barndoms uppfostran (EMBU) was administered before and (one week) after the GCBT,including in the 50 healthy controls. About 21 patients completed the eight-week GCBT (once a week,2 h a session). Follow-up surveys were conducted on 40 patients (22 patients treated with GCBT and 18 untreated) over a 1-5 year period. Significant differences were found between the SAD patients and healthy controls in thinking mode,personality characteristics,social support,parental rearing styles,and social anxiety symptoms. Significant decrease in social anxiety symptom ( t =4.06, P =0.000) , negative automatic thoughts ( t =4.58, P =0.000) and fear for rejection ( t =3.85, P =0.000) were observed after the GCBT therapy. Such improvement was positively correlated with subjective social support ( r =0.361, P =0.022) ,and negatively correlated with rejection of father ( r =-0.431, P =0.005) . There was also statistical difference between the patients with and without the GCBT therapy ( P =0.033) . GCBT treatment can relieve SAD symptoms by changing the negative cognitive of SAD patients. Social support and rejection of father affects the prognosis of SAD.

Social networks, social support and psychiatric symptoms: social determinants and associations within a multicultural community population.

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Smyth, Natasha; Siriwardhana, Chesmal; Hotopf, Matthew; Hatch, Stephani L

2015-07-01

Little is known about how social networks and social support are distributed within diverse communities and how different types of each are associated with a range of psychiatric symptoms. This study aims to address such shortcomings by: (1) describing the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of social networks and social support in a multicultural population and (2) examining how each is associated with multiple mental health outcomes. Data is drawn from the South East London Community Health Study; a cross-sectional study of 1,698 adults conducted between 2008 and 2010. The findings demonstrate variation in social networks and social support by socio-demographic factors. Ethnic minority groups reported larger family networks but less perceived instrumental support. Older individuals and migrant groups reported lower levels of particular network and support types. Individuals from lower socioeconomic groups tended to report less social networks and support across the indicators measured. Perceived emotional and instrumental support, family and friend network size emerged as protective factors for common mental disorder, personality dysfunction and psychotic experiences. In contrast, both social networks and social support appear less relevant for hazardous alcohol use. The findings both confirm established knowledge that social networks and social support exert differential effects on mental health and furthermore suggest that the particular type of social support may be important. In contrast, different types of social network appear to impact upon poor mental health in a more uniform way. Future psychosocial strategies promoting mental health should consider which social groups are vulnerable to reduced social networks and poor social support and which diagnostic groups may benefit most.

Peer-Based Social Media Features in Behavior Change Interventions: Systematic Review

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Weal, Mark; Morrison, Leanne; Yardley, Lucy

2018-01-01

Background Incorporating social media features into digital behavior change interventions (DBCIs) has the potential to contribute positively to their success. However, the lack of clear design principles to describe and guide the use of these features in behavioral interventions limits cross-study comparisons of their uses and effects. Objective The aim of this study was to provide a systematic review of DBCIs targeting modifiable behavioral risk factors that have included social media features as part of their intervention infrastructure. A taxonomy of social media features is presented to inform the development, description, and evaluation of behavioral interventions. Methods Search terms were used in 8 databases to identify DBCIs that incorporated social media features and targeted tobacco smoking, diet and nutrition, physical activities, or alcohol consumption. The screening and review process was performed by 2 independent researchers. Results A total of 5264 articles were screened, and 143 articles describing a total of 134 studies were retained for full review. The majority of studies (70%) reported positive outcomes, followed by 28% finding no effects with regard to their respective objectives and hypothesis, and 2% of the studies found that their interventions had negative outcomes. Few studies reported on the association between the inclusion of social media features and intervention effect. A taxonomy of social media features used in behavioral interventions has been presented with 36 social media features organized under 7 high-level categories. The taxonomy has been used to guide the analysis of this review. Conclusions Although social media features are commonly included in DBCIs, there is an acute lack of information with respect to their effect on outcomes and a lack of clear guidance to inform the selection process based on the features’ suitability for the different behaviors. The proposed taxonomy along with the set of recommendations included

Online social networks for crowdsourced multimedia-involved behavioral testing: An empirical study

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Jun-Ho eChoi

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Online social networks have emerged as effective crowdsourcing media to recruit participants in recent days. However, issues regarding how to effectively exploit them have not been adequately addressed yet. In this paper, we investigate the reliability and effectiveness of multimedia-involved behavioral testing via social network-based crowdsourcing, especially focused on Facebook as a medium to recruit participants. We conduct a crowdsourcing-based experiment for a music recommendation problem. It is shown that different advertisement methods yield different degrees of efficiency and there exist significant differences in behavioral patterns across different genders and different age groups. In addition, we perform a comparison of our experiment with other multimedia-involved crowdsourcing experiments built on Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk, which suggests that crowdsourcing-based experiments using social networks for recruitment can achieve comparable efficiency. Based on the analysis results, advantages and disadvantages of social network-based crowdsourcing and suggestions for successful experiments are also discussed. We conclude that social networks have the potential to support multimedia-involved behavioral tests to gather in-depth data even for long-term periods.

Online Social Networks for Crowdsourced Multimedia-Involved Behavioral Testing: An Empirical Study

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Choi, Jun-Ho; Lee, Jong-Seok

2016-01-01

Online social networks have emerged as effective crowdsourcing media to recruit participants in recent days. However, issues regarding how to effectively exploit them have not been adequately addressed yet. In this paper, we investigate the reliability and effectiveness of multimedia-involved behavioral testing via social network-based crowdsourcing, especially focused on Facebook as a medium to recruit participants. We conduct a crowdsourcing-based experiment for a music recommendation problem. It is shown that different advertisement methods yield different degrees of efficiency and there exist significant differences in behavioral patterns across different genders and different age groups. In addition, we perform a comparison of our experiment with other multimedia-involved crowdsourcing experiments built on Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk), which suggests that crowdsourcing-based experiments using social networks for recruitment can achieve comparable efficiency. Based on the analysis results, advantages and disadvantages of social network-based crowdsourcing and suggestions for successful experiments are also discussed. We conclude that social networks have the potential to support multimedia-involved behavioral tests to gather in-depth data even for long-term periods. PMID:26793137

Online Social Networks for Crowdsourced Multimedia-Involved Behavioral Testing: An Empirical Study.

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Choi, Jun-Ho; Lee, Jong-Seok

2015-01-01

Online social networks have emerged as effective crowdsourcing media to recruit participants in recent days. However, issues regarding how to effectively exploit them have not been adequately addressed yet. In this paper, we investigate the reliability and effectiveness of multimedia-involved behavioral testing via social network-based crowdsourcing, especially focused on Facebook as a medium to recruit participants. We conduct a crowdsourcing-based experiment for a music recommendation problem. It is shown that different advertisement methods yield different degrees of efficiency and there exist significant differences in behavioral patterns across different genders and different age groups. In addition, we perform a comparison of our experiment with other multimedia-involved crowdsourcing experiments built on Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk), which suggests that crowdsourcing-based experiments using social networks for recruitment can achieve comparable efficiency. Based on the analysis results, advantages and disadvantages of social network-based crowdsourcing and suggestions for successful experiments are also discussed. We conclude that social networks have the potential to support multimedia-involved behavioral tests to gather in-depth data even for long-term periods.

Social support and delays seeking care after HIV diagnosis, North Carolina, 2000-2006.

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McCoy, Sandra I; Strauss, Ronald P; MacDonald, Pia D M; Leone, Peter A; Eron, Joseph J; Miller, William C

2009-09-01

Many adults in the USA enter primary care late in the course of HIV infection, countering the clinical benefits of timely HIV services and missing opportunities for risk reduction. Our objective was to determine if perceived social support was associated with delay entering care after an HIV diagnosis. Two hundred and sixteen patients receiving primary care at a large, university-based HIV outpatient clinic in North Carolina were included in the study. Dimensions of functional social support (emotional/informational, tangible, affectionate, and positive social interaction) were quantified with a modified Medical Outcomes Study Social Support Scale and included in proportional hazards models to determine their effect on delays seeking care. The median delay between diagnosis and entry to primary care was 5.9 months. Levels of social support were high but only positive social interaction was moderately associated with delayed presentation in adjusted models. The effect of low perceived positive social interaction on the time to initiation of primary care differed by history of alcoholism (no history of alcoholism, hazard ratio (HR): 1.43, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.88, 2.34; history of alcoholism, HR: 0.71, 95% CI: 0.40, 1.28). Ensuring timely access to HIV care remains a challenge in the southeastern USA. Affectionate, tangible, and emotional/informational social support were not associated with the time from diagnosis to care. The presence of positive social interaction may be an important factor influencing care-seeking behavior after diagnosis.

Dynamic Socialized Gaussian Process Models for Human Behavior Prediction in a Health Social Network

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Shen, Yelong; Phan, NhatHai; Xiao, Xiao; Jin, Ruoming; Sun, Junfeng; Piniewski, Brigitte; Kil, David; Dou, Dejing

2016-01-01

Modeling and predicting human behaviors, such as the level and intensity of physical activity, is a key to preventing the cascade of obesity and helping spread healthy behaviors in a social network. In our conference paper, we have developed a social influence model, named Socialized Gaussian Process (SGP), for socialized human behavior modeling. Instead of explicitly modeling social influence as individuals' behaviors influenced by their friends' previous behaviors, SGP models the dynamic social correlation as the result of social influence. The SGP model naturally incorporates personal behavior factor and social correlation factor (i.e., the homophily principle: Friends tend to perform similar behaviors) into a unified model. And it models the social influence factor (i.e., an individual's behavior can be affected by his/her friends) implicitly in dynamic social correlation schemes. The detailed experimental evaluation has shown the SGP model achieves better prediction accuracy compared with most of baseline methods. However, a Socialized Random Forest model may perform better at the beginning compared with the SGP model. One of the main reasons is the dynamic social correlation function is purely based on the users' sequential behaviors without considering other physical activity-related features. To address this issue, we further propose a novel “multi-feature SGP model” (mfSGP) which improves the SGP model by using multiple physical activity-related features in the dynamic social correlation learning. Extensive experimental results illustrate that the mfSGP model clearly outperforms all other models in terms of prediction accuracy and running time. PMID:27746515

[The psychological and social support in patients with psoriasis].

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Makara-Studzińska, Marta; Ziemecki, Piotr; Ziemecka, Anna; Partyka, Iwona

2013-09-01

The meaning of non medical forms of support in the treatment of psoriasis is discussed in the paper. Related with psoriasis negative self image and feeling of stigmatization cause various mental disorders. Stress, depression, mental condition affect the appearance of psoriasis. Because of numerous studies and identify the factors and relationships important for psoriasis, patients can take the appropriate psychological and social support. Relaxation techniques, cognitive-behavioral therapy and support groups have a positive effect on the treatment of psoriasis. They reduce the level of stress in the patient, learn emotional control, adequate self-esteem, which leads to the acceptance of the disease and improve the quality of life of the patient.

Gateway Political Behaviors: The Frequency and Consequences of Low-Cost Political Engagement on Social Media

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Leticia Bode

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this article is to determine to what extent engagement in easy political behaviors on social media occurs across the range of political interest, what predicts such engagement, and what effect such engagement may have on other political behaviors. It pits the idea that social media may activate the politically uninterested against the idea that social media is just another outlet for the politically interested to demonstrate their engagement. Analyzing survey data collected by the Pew Research Center, it concludes that many people, including the politically uninterested, do engage in easy political behaviors like liking and commenting on political content on social media. When they do, it can lead to greater political activity offline. However, those most likely to engage in easy political behaviors are also those who engage in harder political behaviors, offering support for both the interest and activation hypotheses.

A Large Scale Test of the Effect of Social Class on Prosocial Behavior.

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Korndörfer, Martin; Egloff, Boris; Schmukle, Stefan C

2015-01-01

Does being from a higher social class lead a person to engage in more or less prosocial behavior? Psychological research has recently provided support for a negative effect of social class on prosocial behavior. However, research outside the field of psychology has mainly found evidence for positive or u-shaped relations. In the present research, we therefore thoroughly examined the effect of social class on prosocial behavior. Moreover, we analyzed whether this effect was moderated by the kind of observed prosocial behavior, the observed country, and the measure of social class. Across eight studies with large and representative international samples, we predominantly found positive effects of social class on prosociality: Higher class individuals were more likely to make a charitable donation and contribute a higher percentage of their family income to charity (32,090 ≥ N ≥ 3,957; Studies 1-3), were more likely to volunteer (37,136 ≥N ≥ 3,964; Studies 4-6), were more helpful (N = 3,902; Study 7), and were more trusting and trustworthy in an economic game when interacting with a stranger (N = 1,421; Study 8) than lower social class individuals. Although the effects of social class varied somewhat across the kinds of prosocial behavior, countries, and measures of social class, under no condition did we find the negative effect that would have been expected on the basis of previous results reported in the psychological literature. Possible explanations for this divergence and implications are discussed.

Social support and social network as intermediary social determinants of dental caries in adolescents.

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Fontanini, Humberto; Marshman, Zoe; Vettore, Mario

2015-04-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the association between intermediary social determinants, namely social support and social network with dental caries in adolescents. An adapted version of the WHO social determinants of health conceptual framework was used to organize structural and intermediary social determinants of dental caries into six blocks including perceived social support and number of social networks. A cross-sectional study was conducted with a representative sample of 542 students between 12 and 14 years of age in public schools located in the city of Dourados, Brazil in 2012. The outcome variables were caries experience (DMFT ≥ 1) and current dental caries (component D of DMFT ≥ 1) recorded by a calibrated dentist. Individual interviews were performed to collect data on perceived social support and numbers of social networks from family and friends and covariates. Multivariate Poisson regressions using hierarchical models were conducted. The prevalence of adolescents with caries experience and current dental caries was 55.2% and 32.1%, respectively. Adolescents with low numbers of social networks and low levels of social support from family (PR 1.47; 95% CI = 1.01-2.14) were more likely to have DMFT ≥ 1. Current dental caries was associated with low numbers of social networks and low levels of social support from family (PR 2.26; 95% CI = 1.15-4.44). Social support and social network were influential psychosocial factors to dental caries in adolescents. This finding requires confirmation in other countries but potentially has implications for programmes to promote oral health. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Combination Social Protection for Reducing HIV-Risk Behavior Among Adolescents in South Africa.

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Cluver, Lucie D; Orkin, F Mark; Yakubovich, Alexa R; Sherr, Lorraine

2016-05-01

Social protection (ie, cash transfers, free schools, parental support) has potential for adolescent HIV prevention. We aimed to identify which social protection interventions are most effective and whether combined social protection has greater effects in South Africa. In this prospective longitudinal study, we interviewed 3516 adolescents aged 10-18 between 2009 and 2012. We sampled all homes with a resident adolescent in randomly selected census areas in 4 urban and rural sites in 2 South African provinces. We measured household receipt of 14 social protection interventions and incidence of HIV-risk behaviors. Using gender-disaggregated multivariate logistic regression and marginal effects analyses, we assessed respective contributions of interventions and potential combination effects. Child-focused grants, free schooling, school feeding, teacher support, and parental monitoring were independently associated with reduced HIV-risk behavior incidence (odds ratio: 0.10-0.69). Strong effects of combination social protection were shown, with cumulative reductions in HIV-risk behaviors. For example, girls' predicted past-year incidence of economically driven sex dropped from 11% with no interventions to 2% among those with a child grant, free school, and good parental monitoring. Similarly, girls' incidence of unprotected/casual sex or multiple partners dropped from 15% with no interventions to 10% with either parental monitoring or school feeding, and to 7% with both interventions. In real world, high-epidemic conditions, "combination social protection," shows strong HIV prevention effects for adolescents and may maximize prevention efforts.

Coaching Teachers' Use of Social Behavior Interventions to Improve Children's Outcomes: A Review of the Literature

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Stormont, Melissa; Reinke, Wendy M.; Newcomer, Lori; Marchese, Dana; Lewis, Carla

2015-01-01

Children with social behavior problems need teachers who are prepared to use evidence-based interventions to increase their likelihood of success. However, it is clear that teachers do not feel prepared to support children in this area. One approach for supporting teachers in using more effective interventions for children with behavior needs is…

Correlates of Social Support Among Latino Immigrants.

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Held, Mary L

2018-04-01

Latino immigrants encounter considerable stressors that pose risks to health and well-being during settlement in the USA. Social support serves as a protective factor that can help to buffer the negative effects of stress. Despite the importance of social support, we know little about how Latino immigrants differentially experience this protective factor. The current study analyzed data from 100 Latino immigrants residing in Tennessee. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis was employed to examine variation in self-reported social support by immigrant characteristics and immigration-related factors. Females, immigrants who are not married/cohabitating, and those who reported experiencing a greater number of discrete stressors in the USA each reported lower levels of social support. Implications for practice include an increased emphasis on assessing levels of social support and designing services to strengthen support for the most vulnerable immigrants. Future research should consider a longitudinal analysis and specific types of social support.

Online social support networks.

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Mehta, Neil; Atreja, Ashish

2015-04-01

Peer support groups have a long history and have been shown to improve health outcomes. With the increasing familiarity with online social networks like Facebook and ubiquitous access to the Internet, online social support networks are becoming popular. While studies have shown the benefit of these networks in providing emotional support or meeting informational needs, robust data on improving outcomes such as a decrease in health services utilization or reduction in adverse outcomes is lacking. These networks also pose unique challenges in the areas of patient privacy, funding models, quality of content, and research agendas. Addressing these concerns while creating patient-centred, patient-powered online support networks will help leverage these platforms to complement traditional healthcare delivery models in the current environment of value-based care.

Work-related social support modulates effects of early life stress on limbic reactivity during stress.

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Leicht-Deobald, Ulrich; Bruch, Heike; Bönke, Luisa; Stevense, Amie; Fan, Yan; Bajbouj, Malek; Grimm, Simone

2017-12-15

Early life stress (ELS) affects stress- reactivity via limbic brain regions implicated such as hippocampus and amygdala. Social support is a major protective factor against ELS effects, while subjects with ELS experience reportedly perceive less of it in their daily life. The workplace, where most adults spend a substantial amount of time in their daily lives, might serve as a major resource for social support. Since previous data demonstrated that social support attenuates stress reactivity, we here used a psychosocial stress task to test the hypothesis that work-related social support modulates the effects of ELS. Results show decreased amygdala reactivity during stress in ELS subjects who report high levels of work- related social support, thereby indicating a signature for reduced stress reactivity. However, this effect was only observable on the neural, but not on the behavioral level, since social support had no buffering effect regarding the subjective experience of stress in daily life as well as regarding feelings of uncontrollability induced by the stress task. Accordingly, our data suggest that subjects with ELS experiences might benefit from interventions targeted at lowering their subjective stress levels by helping them to better perceive the availability of social support in their daily lives.

Profiles of African American College Students’ Alcohol Use and Sexual Behaviors: Associations With Stress, Racial Discrimination, and Social Support

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Metzger, Isha W.; Cooper, Shauna M.; Ritchwood, Tiarney D.; Onyeuku, Chisom; Griffin, Charity Brown

2017-01-01

Though studies show that alcohol use and sexual activity increase during emerging adulthood, few studies examine within–ethnic group differences, particularly among African American college students. This investigation utilized a latent class analytic methodology to identify risk behavior profiles of alcohol use (frequency and amount of alcohol consumed), sexual activity (number of intimate partners), and co-occurring risk behaviors (drinking before sexual intercourse) among 228 African American college students. This investigation also examined whether identified risk behavior profiles were associated with stress (interpersonal, intraperso-nal, academic, and environmental), experiences of racial discrimination, and social support (from family, friends, and the college community). Results identified five distinct profiles within this sample: (a) High Sexual Risk—above-average sexual activity; (b) Abstainers—below-average alcohol use and sexual activity; (c) Low Risk—average alcohol use and sexual activity; (d) Alcohol Risk—above-average alcohol use and below-average sexual activity; and (e) Co-Occurring Risk—above-average alcohol use and sexual activity. Identified profiles differed across interpersonal and environmental stress, and self-reported frequency of experiences with racial discrimination. Implications for prevention programs and interventions aimed at reducing alcohol and sexual activity for African American college students are discussed. PMID:27215314

Profiles of African American College Students' Alcohol Use and Sexual Behaviors: Associations With Stress, Racial Discrimination, and Social Support.

Science.gov (United States)

Metzger, Isha W; Cooper, Shauna M; Ritchwood, Tiarney D; Onyeuku, Chisom; Griffin, Charity Brown

2017-01-01

Though studies show that alcohol use and sexual activity increase during emerging adulthood, few studies examine within-ethnic group differences, particularly among African American college students. This investigation utilized a latent class analytic methodology to identify risk behavior profiles of alcohol use (frequency and amount of alcohol consumed), sexual activity (number of intimate partners), and co-occurring risk behaviors (drinking before sexual intercourse) among 228 African American college students. This investigation also examined whether identified risk behavior profiles were associated with stress (interpersonal, intrapersonal, academic, and environmental), experiences of racial discrimination, and social support (from family, friends, and the college community). Results identified five distinct profiles within this sample: (a) High Sexual Risk-above-average sexual activity; (b) Abstainers-below-average alcohol use and sexual activity; (c) Low Risk-average alcohol use and sexual activity; (d) Alcohol Risk-above-average alcohol use and below-average sexual activity; and (e) Co-Occurring Risk-above-average alcohol use and sexual activity. Identified profiles differed across interpersonal and environmental stress, and self-reported frequency of experiences with racial discrimination. Implications for prevention programs and interventions aimed at reducing alcohol and sexual activity for African American college students are discussed.

The Social Support Inventory (SSI) : A brief scale to assess perceived adequacy of social support

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Timmerman, IGH; Emanuels-Zuurveen, ES; Emmelkamp, PMG

The development of a brief measure to assess satisfaction with obtained social support using Simultaneous Components Analysis (SCA) is described. In the first study the component structure of the Social Support Questionnaire (Van Sonderen, 1991) was determined in a sample of men (n = 401) and women

Positive Behavior Support and Applied Behavior Analysis

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Johnston, J. M.; Foxx, R. M.; Jacobson, J. W.; Green, G.; Mulick, J. A.

2006-01-01

This article reviews the origins and characteristics of the positive behavior support (PBS) movement and examines those features in the context of the field of applied behavior analysis (ABA). We raise a number of concerns about PBS as an approach to delivery of behavioral services and its impact on how ABA is viewed by those in human services. We…

Family burden, child disability, and the adjustment of mothers caring for children with epilepsy: Role of social support and coping.

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Carlson, Jeffrey M; Miller, Paul A

2017-03-01

This study was designed to contribute to the existing research on the coping behaviors, social support, and mental health outcomes in parents of children with epilepsy in the United States. Participants included 152, predominantly Caucasian (89.5%), married (78.9%) women (95.4%). Via a web-based interface, mothers completed questionnaires assessing the impact of their child's disability on their family (i.e., severity of their child's disability, family burden, and personal stress), social resources (i.e., perceived social support), coping (i.e., emotion-focused and social support seeking), and adjustment (i.e., depression and anxiety). After controlling for demographic variables, mediational analysis revealed that mothers' perceptions of the severity of their child's disability were associated with decreased perceived social support, which was then related to higher reported levels of depression and anxiety. Similarly, low levels of perceived social support partially mediated the relation between family burden and depression, anxiety, and stress. Finally, mothers' perceptions of the severity of their children's disability and family burden were unrelated to their reports of emotion-focused or social support seeking coping. However, their use of emotion-focused and social support seeking behaviors was related to lower levels of depression. Low levels of perceived social support may help to explain the mechanisms underlying the relation between mothers' perceptions of the severity of their child's disability and family burden on their mental health adjustment, such as depression and anxiety. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Screening for Behavioral Risk: Identification of High Risk Cut Scores within the Social, Academic, and Emotional Behavior Risk Screener (SAEBRS)

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Kilgus, Stephen P.; Taylor, Crystal N.; von der Embse, Nathaniel P.

2018-01-01

The purpose of this study was to support the identification of Social, Academic, and Emotional Behavior Risk Screener (SAEBRS) cut scores that could be used to detect high-risk students. Teachers rated students across two time points (Time 1 n = 1,242 students; Time 2 n = 704) using the SAEBRS and the Behavioral and Emotional Screening System…

The Costly Consequences of not Being Socially and Behaviorally Ready to Learn by Kindergarten in Baltimore City.

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Bettencourt, Amie F; Gross, Deborah; Ho, Grace; Perrin, Nancy

2018-02-01

Social, emotional, and behavioral skills are foundational to learning and long-term success. However, poverty and exposure to adverse childhood experiences reduce the chances of children entering kindergarten socially-behaviorally ready to learn. This study examined the unique impact of 5-year-old children (N = 11,412) entering kindergarten not socially-behaviorally ready on three costly school outcomes by fourth grade in Baltimore City Public Schools: being retained in grade, receiving services and supports through an IEP or 504 plan, and being suspended/expelled. Controlling for all other types of school readiness, students not identified as socially-behaviorally ready for kindergarten were more likely to experience all three school outcomes. Findings underscore the importance of early prevention and intervention strategies targeting parents and social-behavioral readiness skills during the first 5 years of life.

The CRF system and social behavior: a review.

Science.gov (United States)

Hostetler, Caroline M; Ryabinin, Andrey E

2013-01-01

The corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) system plays a key role in a diversity of behaviors accompanying stress, anxiety and depression. There is also substantial research on relationships between social behaviors and the CRF system in a variety of taxa including fish, birds, rodents, and primates. Some of these relationships are due to the broad role of CRF and urocortins in stress and anxiety, but these peptides also modulate social behavior specifically. For example, the social interaction (SI) test is often used to measure anxiety-like behavior. Many components of the CRF system including CRF, urocortin1, and the R1 receptor have been implicated in SI, via general effects on anxiety as well as specific effects depending on the brain region. The CRF system is also highly responsive to chronic social stressors such as social defeat and isolation. Animals exposed to these stressors display a number of anxiety- and stress-related behaviors, accompanied by changes in specific components the CRF system. Although the primary focus of CRF research on social behavior has been on the deleterious effects of social stress, there are also insights on a role for CRF and urocortins in prosocial and affiliative behaviors. The CRF system has been implicated in parental care, maternal defense, sexual behavior, and pair bonding. Species differences in the ligands and CRF receptors have been observed in vole and bird species differing in social behavior. Exogenous administration of CRF facilitates partner preference formation in monogamous male prairie voles, and these effects are dependent on both the CRF R1 and R2 receptors. These findings are particularly interesting as studies have also implicated the CRF and urocortins in social memory. With the rapid progress of social neuroscience and in understanding the complex structure of the CRF system, the next challenge is in parsing the exact contribution of individual components of this system to specific social behaviors.

The CRF System and Social Behavior: A Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Caroline M Hostetler

2013-05-01

Full Text Available The corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF system plays a key role in a diversity of behaviors accompanying stress, anxiety and depression. There is also substantial research on relationships between social behaviors and the CRF system in a variety of taxa including fish, birds, rodents, and primates. Some of these relationships are due to the broad role of CRF and urocortins in stress and anxiety, but these peptides also modulate social behavior specifically. For example, the social interaction (SI test is often used to measure anxiety-like behavior. Many components of the CRF system including CRF, urocortin1, and the R1 receptor have been implicated in SI, via general effects on anxiety as well as specific effects depending on the brain region. The CRF system is also highly responsive to chronic social stressors such as social defeat and isolation. Animals exposed to these stressors display a number of anxiety- and stress-related behaviors, accompanied by changes in specific components the CRF system. Although the primary focus of CRF research on social behavior has been on the deleterious effects of social stress, there are also insights on a role for CRF and urocortins in prosocial and affiliative behaviors. The CRF system has been implicated in parental care, maternal defense, sexual behavior, and pair bonding. Species differences in the ligands and CRF receptors have been observed in vole and bird species differing in social behavior. Exogenous administration of CRF facilitates partner preference formation in monogamous male prairie voles, and these effects are dependent on both the CRF R1 and R2 receptors. These findings are particularly interesting as studies have also implicated the CRF and urocortins in social memory. With the rapid progress of social neuroscience and in understanding the complex structure of the CRF system, the next challenge is in parsing the exact contribution of individual components of this system to specific social

The Impact of School-Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) on the Organizational Health of Elementary Schools

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Bradshaw, Catherine P.; Koth, Christine W.; Bevans, Katherine B.; Ialongo, Nicholas; Leaf, Philip J.

2008-01-01

Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is a universal, school-wide prevention strategy that is currently implemented in over 7,500 schools across the nation to reduce disruptive behavior problems through the application of behavioral, social learning, and organizational behavioral principles. PBIS aims to alter school environments…

Social Support for Women Who Have Undergone Bariatric Surgery.

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Ogle, Jennifer Paff; Park, Juyeon; Damhorst, Mary Lynn; Bradley, Linda Arthur

2016-01-01

We explored the role that social support plays in the lives of women who have undergone bariatric surgery. We conducted in-depth interviews with 13 women who had had bariatric surgery (M age = 53.0 years) and analyzed the data using constant comparison processes. We found that individuals in participants' lives offered support by acting as role models and providing information, offering empathy and expressions of concern and caring, assisting with everyday responsibilities, and serving as companions. In turn, these forms of support guided participants' behavior, calmed their concerns, enhanced their self-esteem, relieved them of daily responsibilities, and offered them companionship in their bariatric journeys. Consistent with the existing theory, differently situated individuals specialized in offering particular types of support. Although participants appreciated the support received, many indicated a desire for more or "better" support, pointing to a need for resources guiding supporters in how to best offer support to bariatric patients. © The Author(s) 2015.

Group treatment for trichotillomania: cognitive-behavioral therapy versus supportive therapy.

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Toledo, Edson Luiz; De Togni Muniz, Enilde; Brito, Antônio Marcelo Cabrita; de Abreu, Cristiano Nabuco; Tavares, Hermano

2015-04-01

Trichotillomania is a psychiatric condition characterized by the chronic pulling and plucking of one's own hair. Cognitive-behavioral therapy shows promise as a treatment for trichotillomania and might be preferable to pharmacotherapy. However, there have been no randomized, controlled studies of the efficacy of group cognitive-behavioral therapy. We evaluated 44 subjects, recruited from April 2009 to May 2010, all of whom met DSM-IV criteria for a diagnosis of trichotillomania. Subjects were randomized to receive 22 sessions of either group cognitive-behavioral therapy or group supportive therapy (control). Treatment evaluation was non-blind and used self-report scales. The primary outcome measure was the improvement of hair-plucking behavior as assessed by the Massachusetts General Hospital Hairpulling Scale. Secondary measures included scores on the Beck Depression Inventory, the Beck Anxiety Inventory, and the Social Adjustment Scale-Self-Report. Both groups showed significant posttreatment improvement in the scores from the Massachusetts General Hospital Hairpulling Scale (F = 23.762, P behavior over time was significantly greater in the study group than in the control group (F = 3.545, P cognitive-behavioral therapy is a valid treatment for trichotillomania. This treatment model should be further revised and expanded to address comorbidities such as anxiety and social maladjustment. ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01968343. © Copyright 2015 Physicians Postgraduate Press, Inc.

Social relationships and health related behaviors among older US adults.

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Watt, Richard G; Heilmann, Anja; Sabbah, Wael; Newton, Tim; Chandola, Tarani; Aida, Jun; Sheiham, Aubrey; Marmot, Michael; Kawachi, Ichiro; Tsakos, Georgios

2014-05-30

Health behaviors are a key determinant of health and well-being that are influenced by the nature of the social environment. This study examined associations between social relationships and health-related behaviors among a nationally representative sample of older people. We analyzed data from three waves (1999-2004) of the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Participants were 4,014 older Americans aged 60 and over. Log-binomial regression models estimated prevalence ratios (PR) for the associations between social relationships and each of the following health behaviors: alcohol use, smoking, physical activity and dental attendance. Health-compromising behaviors (smoking, heavy drinking and less frequent dental visits) were related to marital status, while physical activity, a health-promoting behavior, was associated with the size of friendship networks. Smoking was more common among divorced/separated (PR = 2.1; 95% CI: 1.6, 2.7) and widowed (PR = 1.7; 95% CI: 1.3, 2.3) respondents than among those married or cohabiting, after adjusting for socio-demographic background. Heavy drinking was 2.6 times more common among divorced/separated and 1.7 times more common among widowed men compared to married/cohabiting men, while there was no such association among women. For women, heavy drinking was associated with being single (PR = 1.7; 95% CI: 1.0, 2.9). Being widowed was related to a lower prevalence of having visited a dentist compared to being married or living with a partner (PR = 0.92; 95% CI 0.86, 0.99). Those with a larger circle of friends were more likely to be physically active (PR = 1.17; 95% CI:1.06, 1.28 for 5-8 versus less than 5 friends). Social relationships of older Americans were independently associated with different health-related behaviors, even after adjusting for demographic and socioeconomic determinants. Availability of emotional support did not however mediate these associations. More research is

Effects of Early-Life Stress on Social and Anxiety-Like Behaviors in Adult Mice: Sex-Specific Effects

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Natalya P. Bondar

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Stressful events in an early postnatal period have critical implications for the individual’s life and can increase later risk for psychiatric disorders. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of early-life stress on the social behavior of adult male and female mice. C57Bl/6 mice were exposed to maternal separation (MS, 3 h once a day or handling (HD, 15 min once a day on postnatal day 2 through 14. Adult male and female mice were tested for social behavior in the social interaction test and for individual behavior in the plus-maze and open-field tests. Female mice exposed to maternal separation had increased social behavior and increased anxiety. MS male mice had no changes in social behavior but had significantly disrupted individual behavior, including locomotor and exploratory activity. Handling had positive effects on social behavior in males and females and decreased anxiety in males. Our results support the hypothesis that brief separation of pups from their mothers (handling, which can be considered as moderate stress, may result in future positive changes in behavior. Maternal separation has deleterious effects on individual behavior and significant sex-specific effects on social behavior.

The effect of negative experiences on delinquent behavior of youth in a social withdrawal situation.

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Chan, Gloria Hongyee; Lo, T Wing

2016-07-01

This study examines the relationship between negative experiences, negative emotions, and delinquent behavior among young people in a social withdrawal situation. There were 533 participants in this study and various quantitative analyses were utilized. Results showed that participants with a longer period of social withdrawal were generally less affected by negative experiences, while those with a higher level of social withdrawal were more affected by negative experiences, particularly negative relationships with other people. Also, both negative emotions and higher level of social withdrawal mediated the relationship between negative experiences and involvement in delinquent behavior, with negative emotions displaying a higher mediating effect. This reflects that the root of delinquent behavior is the negative experiences which arouse negative emotions, rather than the social withdrawal behavior itself. Results imply that practitioners should first explore the negative experiences suffered by these young people, so as to provide them the most appropriate support. Copyright © 2016 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The power of social connection and support in improving health: lessons from social support interventions with childbearing women

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Small Rhonda

2011-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background and objective Social support interventions have a somewhat chequered history. Despite evidence that social connection is associated with good health, efforts to implement interventions designed to increase social support have produced mixed results. The aim of this paper is to reflect on the relationship between social connectedness and good health, by examining social support interventions with mothers of young children and analysing how support was conceptualised, enacted and valued, in order to advance what we know about providing support to improve health. Context and approach First, we provide a brief recent history of social support interventions for mothers with young children and we critically examine what was intended by ‘social support’, who provided it and for which groups of mothers, how support was enacted and what was valued by women. Second, we examine the challenges and promise of lay social support approaches focused explicitly on companionship, and draw on experiences in two cluster randomised trials which aimed to improve the wellbeing of mothers. One trial involved a universal approach, providing befriending opportunities for all mothers in the first year after birth, and the other a targeted approach offering support from a ‘mentor mother’ to childbearing women experiencing intimate partner violence. Results Interventions providing social support to mothers have most often been directed to women seen as disadvantaged, or ‘at risk’. They have also most often been enacted by health professionals and have included strong elements of health education and/or information, almost always with a focus on improving parenting skills for better child health outcomes. Fewer have involved non-professional ‘supporters’, and only some have aimed explicitly to provide companionship or a listening ear, despite these aspects being what mothers receiving support have said they valued most. Our trial

Culture and the Immune System: Cultural Consonance in Social Support and C-reactive Protein in Urban Brazil.

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Dressler, William W; Balieiro, Mauro C; Ribeiro, Rosane P; Dos Santos, José Ernesto

2016-06-01

In this article, we examine the distribution of a marker of immune system stimulation-C-reactive protein-in urban Brazil. Social relationships are associated with immunostimulation, and we argue that cultural dimensions of social support, assessed by cultural consonance, are important in this process. Cultural consonance is the degree to which individuals, in their own beliefs and behaviors, approximate shared cultural models. A measure of cultural consonance in social support, based on a cultural consensus analysis regarding sources and patterns of social support in Brazil, was developed. In a survey of 258 persons, the association of cultural consonance in social support and C-reactive protein was examined, controlling for age, sex, body mass index, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, depressive symptoms, and a social network index. Lower cultural consonance in social support was associated with higher C-reactive protein. Implications of these results for future research are discussed. © 2016 by the American Anthropological Association.

The Relationship of Social Engagement and Social Support With Sense of Community.

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Tang, Fengyan; Chi, Iris; Dong, Xinqi

2017-07-01

We aimed to investigate the relationship of engagement in social and cognitive activities and social support with the sense of community (SOC) and its components among older Chinese Americans. The Sense of Community Index (SCI) was used to measure SOC and its four component factors: membership, influence, needs fulfillment, and emotional connection. Social engagement was assessed with 16 questions. Social support included positive support and negative strain. Principal component analysis was used to identify the SCI components. Linear regression analysis was used to detect the contribution of social engagement and social support to SOC and its components. After controlling for sociodemographics and self-rated health, social activity engagement and positive social support were positively related to SOC and its components. This study points to the importance of social activity engagement and positive support from family and friends in increasing the sense of community. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Updating biological bases of social behavior.

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O'Connor, Thomas G

2014-09-01

This month's collation of papers deals with social behaviors that operationalize key constructs in fields covered by the journal, including attachment theory and parenting; emotional regulation; psychopathology of several forms; general and specific cognitive abilities. Notably, many examples are offered of how these social behaviors link with biology. That is an obvious and important direction for clinical research insofar as it helps to erase a perceptual chasm and artificial duality between 'behavior' and 'biology'. But, although it must be the case that social behavior has biological connections of one sort or other, identifying reliable connections with practical application has proved to be a non-trivial challenge. In particular, the challenge seems to be in measuring social behavior meaningfully enough that it could be expected to have a biological pulse, and in measuring biological markers systematically enough that emergent-downstream effects would surface. Associations are not especially uncommon, but it has been a frustrating task in constructing a practically broad model from a bricolage of scattered and disconnected parts and findings in the literature. Several reports in this issue offer contrasts that may help move along this line of study. © 2014 Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health.

Parent-Implemented Behavioral Skills Training of Social Skills

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Dogan, Rebecca K.; King, Melissa L.; Fischetti, Anthony T.; Lake, Candice M.; Mathews, Therese L.; Warzak, William J.

2017-01-01

Impairment in social skills is a primary feature of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs). Research indicates that social skills are intimately tied to social development and negative social consequences can persist if specific social behaviors are not acquired. The present study evaluated the effects of behavioral skills training (BST) on teaching…

Reproductive neuroendocrine pathways of social behavior

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ishwar eParhar

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Social behaviors are key components of reproduction because they are essential for successful fertilization. Social behaviors such as courtship, mating, and aggression are strongly associated with sex steroids, such as testosterone, estradiol and progesterone. Secretion of sex steroids from the gonads is regulated by the hypothalamus-pituitary-gonadal (HPG axis in vertebrates. Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH is a pivotal hypothalamic neuropeptide that stimulates gonadotropin release from the pituitary. In recent years, the role of neuropeptides containing the C-terminal Arg-Phe-NH2 (RFamide peptides has been emphasized in vertebrate reproduction. In particular, two key RFamide peptides, kisspeptin and gonadotropin-inhibitory hormone (GnIH, emerged as critical accelerator and suppressor of gonadotropin secretion. Kisspeptin stimulates GnRH release by directly acting on GnRH neurons, whereas GnIH inhibits gonadotropin release by inhibiting kisspeptin or GnRH neurons or pituitary gonadotropes. These neuropeptides can regulate social behavior by regulating the HPG axis. However, distribution of neuronal fibers of GnRH, kisspeptin and GnIH neurons are not limited within the hypothalamus, and the existence of extra-hypothalamic neuronal fibers suggests direct control of social behavior within the brain. It has traditionally been shown that central administration of GnRH can stimulate female sexual behavior in rats. Recently, it was shown that Kiss1, one of the paralogs of kisspeptin peptide family, regulates fear responses in zebrafish and GnIH inhibits socio-sexual behavior in birds. Here we highlight recent findings regarding the role of GnRH, kisspeptin and GnIH in the regulation of social behaviors in fish, birds and mammals and discuss their importance in future biological and biomedical research.

How perceived social support relates to suicidal ideation: a Japanese social resident survey.

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Endo, Go; Tachikawa, Hirokazu; Fukuoka, Yoshiharu; Aiba, Miyuki; Nemoto, Kiyotaka; Shiratori, Yuki; Matsui, Yutaka; Doi, Nagafumi; Asada, Takashi

2014-05-01

The loss of social support is one of the major risk factors for suicide. However, there are few empirical studies that have examined how a person's suicide ideation relates to their social support. To examine the relationship between social support and suicidal ideation. Self-report questionnaires were sent to 2,200 randomly selected adults in Japan. The questionnaire inquired the participants about the severity of suicidal ideation, the details of current perceived social support and their degree of satisfaction with this social support. Social support and related indicators were compared among three groups of participants that varied in severity of suicidal ideation. People in the group that had suicide ideation during their lives reported receiving significantly less support from their family and had greater feelings of dissatisfaction with that support than those in the other groups. Furthermore, people who had suicide ideation during the month immediately preceding the survey reported providing less support to their family, relatives or friends, as well as receiving less support from family than other groups, and having stronger feelings of dissatisfaction with social support. Our study identified a strong relationship between the severity of suicidal ideation and perceived social support.

Social networks, social support mechanisms, and quality of life after breast cancer diagnosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Kroenke, Candyce H; Kwan, Marilyn L; Neugut, Alfred I; Ergas, Isaac J; Wright, Jaime D; Caan, Bette J; Hershman, Dawn; Kushi, Lawrence H

2013-06-01

We examined mechanisms through which social relationships influence quality of life (QOL) in breast cancer survivors. This study included 3,139 women from the Pathways Study who were diagnosed with breast cancer from 2006 to 2011 and provided data on social networks (the presence of a spouse or intimate partner, religious/social ties, volunteering, and numbers of close friends and relatives), social support (tangible support, emotional/informational support, affection, positive social interaction), and QOL, measured by the FACT-B, approximately 2 months post diagnosis. We used logistic models to evaluate associations between social network size, social support, and lower versus higher than median QOL scores. We further stratified by stage at diagnosis and treatment. In multivariate-adjusted analyses, women who were characterized as socially isolated had significantly lower FACT-B (OR = 2.18, 95 % CI: 1.72-2.77), physical well-being (WB) (OR = 1.61, 95 % CI: 1.27-2.03), functional WB (OR = 2.08, 95 % CI: 1.65-2.63), social WB (OR = 3.46, 95 % CI: 2.73-4.39), and emotional WB (OR = 1.67, 95 % CI: 1.33-2.11) scores and higher breast cancer symptoms (OR = 1.48, 95 % CI: 1.18-1.87) compared with socially integrated women. Each social network member independently predicted higher QOL. Simultaneous adjustment for social networks and social support partially attenuated associations between social networks and QOL. The strongest mediator and type of social support that was most predictive of QOL outcomes was "positive social interaction." However, each type of support was important depending on outcome, stage, and treatment status. Larger social networks and greater social support were related to higher QOL after a diagnosis of breast cancer. Effective social support interventions need to evolve beyond social-emotional interventions and need to account for disease severity and treatment status.

Social support and personal models of diabetes as predictors of self- care and well-being

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Skinner, T. Chas; John, Mary; Hampson, Sarah E.

2000-01-01

, well-being, and social support. Results: Perceived impact of diabetes and supportive family and friends were prospectively predictive of participants' well-being measures. Although support from family and friends was predictive of better dietary self-care, this relationship was mediated by personal...... of diabetes are important determinants of both dietary self-care and well-being. In addition, personal models may serve to mediate the relationship between social support and dietary behavior.......Objectives: To examine whether peer support and illness representation mediate the link between family support, self-management and well-being. Method: Fifty-two adolescents (12-18 years old) with Type I diabetes were recruited and followed over 6 months, completing assessments of self- management...

Preschool children's behavioral tendency toward social indirect reciprocity.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mayuko Kato-Shimizu

Full Text Available Social indirect reciprocity seems to be crucial in enabling large-scale cooperative networks among genetically unrelated individuals in humans. However, there are relatively few studies on social indirect reciprocity in children compared to adults. Investigating whether young children have a behavioral tendency toward social indirect reciprocity will help us understand how and when the fundamental ability to form cooperative relationships among adults is acquired. Using naturalistic observation at a nursery school, this study examined whether 5- to 6-year-olds show a behavioral tendency to engage in social indirect reciprocity in response to their peers' prosocial behavior toward a third party. The results revealed that bystander children tended to display prosocial behavior toward their peers more frequently after observing these peers' prosocial behavior toward third-party peers, compared with control situations; this suggests that 5- to 6-year-olds may have an essential behavioral tendency to establish social indirect reciprocity when interacting with peers in their daily lives. In addition, bystanders tended to display affiliative behavior after observing focal children's prosocial behavior. In other words, observing peers' prosocial behavior toward third-party peers evoked bystanders' positive emotions toward the helpers. Considering both the present results and previous findings, we speculate that in preschoolers, such positive emotions might mediate the increase in the bystander's prosocial behavior toward the helper. In addition, an intuitional emotional process plays an important role in the preschooler's behavioral tendency toward social indirect reciprocity in natural interactions with peers.

Preschool children's behavioral tendency toward social indirect reciprocity.

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Kato-Shimizu, Mayuko; Onishi, Kenji; Kanazawa, Tadahiro; Hinobayashi, Toshihiko

2013-01-01

Social indirect reciprocity seems to be crucial in enabling large-scale cooperative networks among genetically unrelated individuals in humans. However, there are relatively few studies on social indirect reciprocity in children compared to adults. Investigating whether young children have a behavioral tendency toward social indirect reciprocity will help us understand how and when the fundamental ability to form cooperative relationships among adults is acquired. Using naturalistic observation at a nursery school, this study examined whether 5- to 6-year-olds show a behavioral tendency to engage in social indirect reciprocity in response to their peers' prosocial behavior toward a third party. The results revealed that bystander children tended to display prosocial behavior toward their peers more frequently after observing these peers' prosocial behavior toward third-party peers, compared with control situations; this suggests that 5- to 6-year-olds may have an essential behavioral tendency to establish social indirect reciprocity when interacting with peers in their daily lives. In addition, bystanders tended to display affiliative behavior after observing focal children's prosocial behavior. In other words, observing peers' prosocial behavior toward third-party peers evoked bystanders' positive emotions toward the helpers. Considering both the present results and previous findings, we speculate that in preschoolers, such positive emotions might mediate the increase in the bystander's prosocial behavior toward the helper. In addition, an intuitional emotional process plays an important role in the preschooler's behavioral tendency toward social indirect reciprocity in natural interactions with peers.

Perceptions of Popularity-Related Behaviors in the Cyber Context: Relations to Cyber Social Behaviors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michelle F. Wright

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Despite acknowledging that adolescents are active users of electronic technology, little is known about their perceptions concerning how such technologies might be used to promote their social standing among their peer group and whether these perceptions relate to their cyber social behaviors (i.e., cyber aggression perpetration, cyber prosocial behavior. To address this gap in the literature, the present study included 857 seventh graders (M age: 12.19; 50.8% female from a large Midwestern city in the United States. They completed questionnaires on face-to-face social behaviors, cyber social behaviors, perceived popularity, social preference, and their perceptions of characteristics and activities related to the cyber context which might be used to promote popularity. Findings revealed four activities and characteristics used to improve adolescents’ social standing in the peer group, including antisocial behaviors, sociability, prosocial behaviors, and technology access. Using antisocial behaviors in the cyber context to promote popularity was related to cyber aggression perpetration, while controlling for gender, social preference, and perceived popularity. On the other hand, sociability and prosocial behaviors in the cyber context used to improve popularity as well as technology access were associated with cyber prosocial behavior. A call for additional research is made.

A Large Scale Test of the Effect of Social Class on Prosocial Behavior

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Korndörfer, Martin; Egloff, Boris; Schmukle, Stefan C.

2015-01-01

Does being from a higher social class lead a person to engage in more or less prosocial behavior? Psychological research has recently provided support for a negative effect of social class on prosocial behavior. However, research outside the field of psychology has mainly found evidence for positive or u-shaped relations. In the present research, we therefore thoroughly examined the effect of social class on prosocial behavior. Moreover, we analyzed whether this effect was moderated by the kind of observed prosocial behavior, the observed country, and the measure of social class. Across eight studies with large and representative international samples, we predominantly found positive effects of social class on prosociality: Higher class individuals were more likely to make a charitable donation and contribute a higher percentage of their family income to charity (32,090 ≥ N ≥ 3,957; Studies 1–3), were more likely to volunteer (37,136 ≥N ≥ 3,964; Studies 4–6), were more helpful (N = 3,902; Study 7), and were more trusting and trustworthy in an economic game when interacting with a stranger (N = 1,421; Study 8) than lower social class individuals. Although the effects of social class varied somewhat across the kinds of prosocial behavior, countries, and measures of social class, under no condition did we find the negative effect that would have been expected on the basis of previous results reported in the psychological literature. Possible explanations for this divergence and implications are discussed. PMID:26193099

Social Support and Low-Income, Urban Mothers: Longitudinal Associations with Adolescent Delinquency

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Ghazarian, Sharon R.; Roche, Kathleen M.

2010-01-01

The current study examined the role of engaged parenting in explaining longitudinal associations between maternal perceptions of social network support and whether youth engage in delinquent behaviors during the transition into adolescence. The sample included 432 low-income, African American and Latino youth (49% female) and their mothers…

The social support and social network characteristics of smokers in methadone maintenance treatment.

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de Dios, Marcel Alejandro; Stanton, Cassandra A; Caviness, Celeste M; Niaura, Raymond; Stein, Michael

2013-01-01

Previous studies have shown social support and social network variables to be important factors in smoking cessation treatment. Tobacco use is highly prevalent among individuals in methadone maintenance treatment (MMT). However, smoking cessation treatment outcomes in this vulnerable subpopulation have been poor and social support and social network variables may contribute. The current study examined the social support and social network characteristics of 151 MMT smokers involved in a randomized clinical trial of smoking cessation treatments. Participants were 50% women and 78% Caucasian. A high proportion (57%) of MMT smokers had spouses or partners who smoke and over two-thirds of households (68.5%) included at least one smoker. Our sample was characterized by relatively small social networks, but high levels of general social support and quitting support. The number of cigarettes per day was found to be positively associated with the number of smokers in the social network (r = .239, p social support and social networks of smokers in MMT.

Social network cohesion in school classes promotes prosocial behavior.

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van den Bos, Wouter; Crone, Eveline A; Meuwese, Rosa; Güroğlu, Berna

2018-01-01

Adolescence is a key period of social development at the end of which individuals are expected to take on adult social roles. The school class, as the most salient peer group, becomes the prime environment that impacts social development during adolescence. Using social network analyses, we investigated how individual and group level features are related to prosocial behavior and social capital (generalized trust). We mapped the social networks within 22 classrooms of adolescents aged between 12 and 18 years (N = 611), and collected data on social behaviors towards peers. Our results indicate that individuals with high centrality show both higher levels of prosocial behavior and relational aggression. Importantly, greater social cohesion in the classroom was associated with (1) reduced levels of antisocial behavior towards peers and (2) increased generalized trust. These results provide novel insights in the relationship between social structure and social behavior, and stress the importance of the school environment in the development of not only intellectual but also social capital.

Social network cohesion in school classes promotes prosocial behavior

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Crone, Eveline A.; Meuwese, Rosa; Güroğlu, Berna

2018-01-01

Adolescence is a key period of social development at the end of which individuals are expected to take on adult social roles. The school class, as the most salient peer group, becomes the prime environment that impacts social development during adolescence. Using social network analyses, we investigated how individual and group level features are related to prosocial behavior and social capital (generalized trust). We mapped the social networks within 22 classrooms of adolescents aged between 12 and 18 years (N = 611), and collected data on social behaviors towards peers. Our results indicate that individuals with high centrality show both higher levels of prosocial behavior and relational aggression. Importantly, greater social cohesion in the classroom was associated with (1) reduced levels of antisocial behavior towards peers and (2) increased generalized trust. These results provide novel insights in the relationship between social structure and social behavior, and stress the importance of the school environment in the development of not only intellectual but also social capital. PMID:29617405

Living Up to the Code's Exhortations? Social Workers' Political Knowledge Sources, Expectations, and Behaviors.

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Felderhoff, Brandi Jean; Hoefer, Richard; Watson, Larry Dan

2016-01-01

The National Association of Social Workers' (NASW's) Code of Ethics urges social workers to engage in political action. However, little recent research has been conducted to examine whether social workers support this admonition and the extent to which they actually engage in politics. The authors gathered data from a survey of social workers in Austin, Texas, to address three questions. First, because keeping informed about government and political news is an important basis for action, the authors asked what sources of knowledge social workers use. Second, they asked what the respondents believe are appropriate political behaviors for other social workers and NASW. Third, they asked for self-reports regarding respondents' own political behaviors. Results indicate that social workers use the Internet and traditional media services to stay informed; expect other social workers and NASW to be active; and are, overall, more active than the general public in many types of political activities. The comparisons made between expectations for others and their own behaviors are interesting in their complex outcomes. Social workers should strive for higher levels of adherence to the code's urgings on political activity. Implications for future work are discussed.

Peer-Based Social Media Features in Behavior Change Interventions: Systematic Review.

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Elaheebocus, Sheik Mohammad Roushdat Ally; Weal, Mark; Morrison, Leanne; Yardley, Lucy

2018-02-22

Incorporating social media features into digital behavior change interventions (DBCIs) has the potential to contribute positively to their success. However, the lack of clear design principles to describe and guide the use of these features in behavioral interventions limits cross-study comparisons of their uses and effects. The aim of this study was to provide a systematic review of DBCIs targeting modifiable behavioral risk factors that have included social media features as part of their intervention infrastructure. A taxonomy of social media features is presented to inform the development, description, and evaluation of behavioral interventions. Search terms were used in 8 databases to identify DBCIs that incorporated social media features and targeted tobacco smoking, diet and nutrition, physical activities, or alcohol consumption. The screening and review process was performed by 2 independent researchers. A total of 5264 articles were screened, and 143 articles describing a total of 134 studies were retained for full review. The majority of studies (70%) reported positive outcomes, followed by 28% finding no effects with regard to their respective objectives and hypothesis, and 2% of the studies found that their interventions had negative outcomes. Few studies reported on the association between the inclusion of social media features and intervention effect. A taxonomy of social media features used in behavioral interventions has been presented with 36 social media features organized under 7 high-level categories. The taxonomy has been used to guide the analysis of this review. Although social media features are commonly included in DBCIs, there is an acute lack of information with respect to their effect on outcomes and a lack of clear guidance to inform the selection process based on the features' suitability for the different behaviors. The proposed taxonomy along with the set of recommendations included in this review will support future research aimed

From childhood adversity to problem behaviors: Role of psychological and structural social integration.

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Chao, Lo-Hsin; Tsai, Meng-Che; Liang, Ya-Lun; Strong, Carol; Lin, Chung-Ying

2018-01-01

Childhood adversity (CA) is associated with problem behaviors in adolescence, but the mediators, that is, those factors that help build resilience and prevent some children who experience CA from engaging in problem behaviors, await more exploration, including social integration. The aim of this study was to identify the association between CA and adolescent problem behaviors, and to further examine the mediating role of social integration distinctly as psychological and structural integration. Data used were from the Taiwan Education Panel Survey, a core panel of 4,261 students (age 13) surveyed in 2001 and followed for three more waves until age 18. For psychological integration, an average score was calculated to represent adolescents' feelings about their school. Structural integration was constructed using several items about adolescents' school and extracurricular activities. We used structural equation modeling with the diagonally weighted least squares method to examine the effect of CA on the primary outcome: adolescent problem behaviors via social integration. The hypothesized structural equation model specifying the path from CA to adolescent problem behavior had good fit. Respondents with one CA were indirectly linked to problem behaviors via psychological but not structural integration (e.g. the level of participation in school and non-school activities). On mediation analysis, psychological integration significantly mediated the paths from one CA to all six problem behaviors (all P integration; two or more CA were not associated with significant paths to problem behaviors. The contribution of social integration is crucial to an adolescent's development from CA to problem behaviors. To form supportive social relationships to achieve better health, we suggest that those adolescents who have been exposed to CA should be helped to join more teams and take part in more activities, thereby increasing their opportunities for social interaction, and improving

Survey of osteoporosis preventive behaviors among women in Fasa: The Application of the Health Belief Model and Social Cognitive Theory

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Ali Khani Jeihooni

2016-04-01

self-regulation, social protection of social cognitive theory, and questionnaire of functional feeding and walking were determined to prevent osteoporosis in women. The data were analyzed using SPSS 16 software. Results: The average age of women was 40/9± 6/2 years. The variables of perceived susceptibility, motivation, social support and self-regulation for walking behavior and variables of perceived sensitivity and self-regulation for feeding behavior were predicted. There was a significant association between walking performance and perceived susceptibility (B=0.252 ,p=0/007, motivation (B=0.235 ,p=0.009, social support (B=0.078 ,p=0.030 and Self-regulation (B=0.105 ,p=0.007. In this study, there was a significant association between nutritional performance and perceived susceptibility (B=0.10,p=0.02, self-regulation (r=0.069 ,p=0.050. The variables under study expressed 29/1% of the variance in walking behavior and 20/2% of the variance in feeding behavior in osteoporosis prevention. Conclusion: The study indicated that perceived susceptibility, motivation, self-regulation and social support, otherwise more people might have osteoporosis preventive behaviors better .Health Belief Model and Social Cognitive Theory can be used as a framework for designing and implementing educational interventions for the prevention of osteoporosis in women and can help to improve and maintain their health.

The Online Social Support Scale: Measure development and validation.

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Nick, Elizabeth A; Cole, David A; Cho, Sun-Joo; Smith, Darcy K; Carter, T Grace; Zelkowitz, Rachel L

2018-05-21

A new measure, the Online Social Support Scale, was developed based on previous theory, research, and measurement of in-person social support. It includes four subscales: Esteem/Emotional Support, Social Companionship, Informational Support, and Instrumental Support. In college and community samples, factor analytic and item response theory results suggest that subtypes of in-person social support also pertain in the online world. Evidence of reliability, convergent validity, and discriminant validity provide excellent psychometric support for the measure. Construct validity accrues to the measure vis-à-vis support for three hypotheses: (a) Various broad types of Internet platforms for social interactions are differentially associated with online social support and online victimization; (b) similar to in-person social support, online social support offsets the adverse effect of negative life events on self-esteem and depression-related outcome; and (c) online social support counteracts the effects of online victimization in much the same way that in-person friends in one social niche counterbalance rejection in other social niches. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Family supportive supervisor behaviors and organizational culture:Effects on work engagement and performance

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Rofcanin, Yasin; Heras , Mireia Las; Bakker, Arnold B

2017-01-01

Informed by social information processing (SIP) theory, in this study, we assessed the associations among family supportive supervisor behaviors (FSSBs) as perceived by subordinates, subordinate work engagement, and supervisor-rated work performance. Moreover, we explored the role of family supportive organizational culture as a contextual variable influencing our proposed associations. Our findings using matched supervisor-subordinate data collected from a financial credit company in Mexico ...

The Moderating Effect of Social Support on the Relationship Between Impulsivity and Suicide in Rural China.

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Zhang, Jie; Lin, Lin

2015-07-01

This study was to investigate the relationship among social support, impulsivity, and suicide, so as to test the hypothesis that social support moderates the effect of impulsivity on suicide for the rural young suicides in China. Subjects were 392 consecutively recruited suicides aged 15-34 years and 416 community controls of the same age range sampled in China. The case-control data were obtained using psychological autopsy. The results showed that high social support had the protective effect among individuals with low impulsivity. It can be concluded that impulsivity is a potential area for further study of suicidal behavior. The suicide prevention efforts in rural China may address impulsivity.

Gender differences in collaborative learning over online social networks: Epistemological beliefs and behaviors

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Rosanna Y.-Y. Chan

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Online social networks are popular venues for computer-supported collaborative work and computer-supported collaborative learning. Professionals within the same discipline, such as software developers, often interact over various social network sites for knowledge updates and collective understandings. The current study aims at gathering empirical evidences concerning gender differences in online social network beliefs and behaviors. A total of 53 engineering postgraduate students were engaged in a blogging community for collaborative learning. Participants’ beliefs about collaboration and nature of knowledge and knowing (i.e. epistemological beliefs are investigated. More specifically, social network analysis metrics including in-degree, out-degree, closeness centrality, and betweenness centrality are obtained from an 8-interval longitudinal SNA. Methodologically speaking, the current work puts forward mixed methods of longitudinal SNA and quantitative beliefs survey to explore online social network participants’ beliefs and behaviors. The study’s findings demonstrate significant gender differences in collaborative learning through online social networks, including (1 female engineering postgraduate students engage significantly more actively in online communications, (2 male engineering postgraduate students are more likely to be the potential controllers of information flows, and (3 gender differences exist in belief gains related to social aspects, but not individual's epistemic aspects. Overall, participants in both genders demonstrated enhanced beliefs in collaboration as well as the nature of knowledge and knowing.

Gender-related personality traits, self-efficacy, and social support: how do they relate to women's waist circumference change?

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Hankonen, Nelli; Konttinen, Hanna; Absetz, Pilvikki

2014-10-01

This study investigated whether gender-role related traits agency and communion contribute to successful health behavior change, in an interplay with domain-specific psychosocial factors, namely, agency, mediated by health-related self-efficacy, and communion, moderated by social support. Data from women (N = 282) participating in the GOAL Lifestyle Implementation Trial were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Agency and increase in self-efficacy both independently predicted waist circumference reduction in the 1-year follow-up. Individuals high in communion succeeded in waist reduction only if they received social support. Initial self-efficacy increase predicted 3-year waist reduction. Gender-role orientation, together with social environment, influences behavior change intervention outcomes. © The Author(s) 2013.

Behavioral and social cognitive processes in preschool children's social dominance.

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Pellegrini, Anthony D; Van Ryzin, Mark J; Roseth, Cary; Bohn-Gettler, Catherine; Dupuis, Danielle; Hickey, Meghan; Peshkam, Annie

2011-01-01

This longitudinal, naturalistic study addressed behavioral and social cognitive processes implicated in preschool children's social dominance. In the first objective, we examined the degree to which peer aggression, affiliation, and postaggression reconciliation predicted social dominance across a school year. Consistent with predictions, all three predicted dominance early in the year while only affiliation predicted dominance later in the year, suggesting that aggression, affiliation, and reconciliation were used to establish social dominance where affiliation was used to maintain it. In the second, exploratory, objective we tested the relative importance of social dominance and reconciliation (the Machiavellian and Vygotskian intelligence hypotheses, respectively) in predicting theory of mind/false belief. Results indicated that social dominance accounted for significant variance, beyond that related to reconciliation and affiliation, in predicting theory of mind/false belief status. Results are discussed in terms of specific behavioral and social cognitive processes employed in establishing and maintaining social dominance. © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Managers' social support: Facilitators and hindrances for seeking support at work.

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Lundqvist, Daniel; Fogelberg Eriksson, Anna; Ekberg, Kerstin

2018-01-01

Previous research has shown that social support is important for health and performance at work, but there is a lack of research regarding managers' social support at work, and if it needs to be improvedOBJECTIVE:To investigate managers' perception of work-related social support, and facilitators and hindrances that influence their seeking of social support at work. Semi-structured interviews with sixty-two managers in two Swedish organizations. Work-related support, which strengthened their managerial image of being competent, was sought from sources within the workplace. Sensitive and personal support, where there was a risk of jeopardizing their image of being competent, was sought from sources outside the workplace. Access to arenas for support (location of the workplace, meetings, and vocational courses) and the managerial role could facilitate their support-seeking, but could also act as hindrances. Because attending different arenas for support were demanding, they refrained from seeking support if the demands were perceived as too high. Different supportive sources are distinguished based on what supportive function they have and in which arenas they are found, in order to preserve the confidence of the closest organization and to maintain the image of being a competent and performing manager.

Increasing social support for depressed individuals: a cross-cultural assessment of an affect-expectancy approach.

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Siegel, Jason T; Alvaro, Eusebio M; Crano, William D; Lienemann, Brianna A; Hohman, Zachary P; O'Brien, Erin

2012-01-01

Depression is a mental illness affecting 121 million people. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration recently launched a national, bilingual (English and Spanish) campaign to motivate young adults to support friends with mental illness. This article highlights and assesses the usefulness of two theoretically derived variables for increasing the social support received by all depressed individuals: (a) affect and (b) social support outcome expectations. In accord with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's bilingual campaign, the authors conducted two studies using intercepts at 2 swap meets in the U.S. Southwest. One study sample consisted of Spanish-dominant Hispanics, the other non-Hispanics. For both samples, results indicate that affect, social support outcome expectations, and their interaction accounted for more than 50% of the variance of social support intentions (67% in the Hispanic sample when familism was considered). Affect is commonplace in the helping behavior literature; results indicate social support outcome expectations deserve equal consideration. Moreover, an unexpected finding emerged: Perceiving a lack of willpower, need for attention, and lack of moral character to be the cause of depression resulted in increased sympathy among the Hispanic sample but increased anger among non-Hispanics.

Cultivating secondary traumatic growth among healthcare workers: the role of social support and self-efficacy.

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Shoji, Kotaro; Bock, Judith; Cieslak, Roman; Zukowska, Katarzyna; Luszczynska, Aleksandra; Benight, Charles C

2014-09-01

This 2-study longitudinal investigation examined the indirect effects of secondary traumatic stress (STS) on secondary traumatic growth via two mediators: perceived social support and secondary trauma self-efficacy. In particular, we tested if the 2 hypothetical mediators operate sequentially, that is, with secondary trauma self-efficacy facilitating social support (i.e., cultivation hypothesis) and/or social support enhancing self-efficacy (i.e., enabling hypothesis). Participants in Study 1 (N = 293 at Time 1, N = 115 at Time 2) were behavioral healthcare providers working with U.S. military personnel suffering from trauma. Study 2 was conducted among Polish healthcare workers (N = 298 at Time 1, N = 189 at Time 2) providing services for civilian survivors of traumatic events. In both studies, multiple mediational analyses showed evidence for the cultivation hypothesis. The relationship between STS at Time 1 and secondary traumatic growth at Time 2 was mediated sequentially by secondary trauma self-efficacy at Time 1 and social support at Time 2. The enabling hypothesis was not supported. Education and development programs for healthcare workers may benefit from boosting self-efficacy with the intent to facilitate perceived social support. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Age and Social Support Seeking: Understanding the Role of Perceived Social Costs to Others.

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Jiang, Li; Drolet, Aimee; Kim, Heejung S

2018-07-01

We examined age differences in the use of different types of social support and the reasons for these differences. We found that older adults (age 60+) seek explicit social support less compared with young adults (age 18-25), but there is no difference in implicit social support seeking. Concerns about the potential social costs of seeking explicit support mediate the age differences in explicit social support seeking. Whereas young adults view this strategy as conferring more benefits than costs, older adults have a more balanced view of the costs and benefits of explicit social support seeking. Older and young adults do not differ in perceptions of the relative costs versus benefits of implicit social support seeking. Finally, we found older adults benefit more from implicit (vs. explicit) social support emotionally than young adults, which further explains why age groups differ in their use of explicit versus implicit social support.

Social Support and Social Anxiety in Use and Perceptions of Online Mental Health Resources: Exploring Social Compensation and Enhancement.

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Ruppel, Erin K; McKinley, Christopher J

2015-08-01

This study used the frameworks of social compensation and social enhancement to examine how social anxiety and social support were related to college students' (N=443) use and perceptions of online mental health resources (Web sites and online support groups). Potential interactions between social support and social anxiety were also examined. Consistent with the social compensation hypothesis, perceived usefulness of Web sites was positively associated with social support. Perceived usefulness of online support groups was positively associated with social support when participants reported average or high, but not low, social anxiety. In contrast, previous use of Web sites was consistent with the social compensation hypothesis. Participants who reported less social support were more likely to have used a Web site for a mental or emotional problem. These findings suggest that college students' use and perceptions of online mental health resources vary as a function of social support and social anxiety, and that patterns suggestive of social compensation and social enhancement depend on whether perceptions or actual use of resources are examined. Combined with the significant interaction between social support and social anxiety on perceived usefulness of online support groups, these findings highlight the potential complexity of social compensation and enhancement phenomena.

Social support and social interaction ties on internet addiction: integrating online and offline contexts.

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Wang, Edward Shih-Tse; Wang, Michael Chih-Hung

2013-11-01

This study explores the relationship between social support and social interaction ties on Internet addiction by integrating both online and offline social encounters. A total of 1,642 members of online social communities participated in this research, for which structural equation modeling was used for analysis. The findings show that social support is positively associated with social interaction ties in both online and offline contexts. In addition, online social support and online social interaction ties are positively associated with Internet addiction, whereas offline social support and social interaction ties on Internet addiction are negatively associated. This finding has important implications not only for understanding the cause of Internet addiction but also for understanding the diminishing Internet addiction due to social support and social interaction ties.

WHEN DO "THE DARK PERSONALITIES" BECOME LESS COUNTERPRODUCTIVE? THE MODERATING ROLE OF JOB CONTROL AND SOCIAL SUPPORT.

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Baka, Łukasz

2018-04-13

The objective of the study is to examine how job resources modify the relationship between Dark Triad (DT) and counterproductive work behavior (CWB). Specifically the study examined (1) the direct link between DT and CWB, (2) the moderation effects of two kinds of job resources (job control and social support), and (3) the moderated moderation effect of the job resources (job control x social support) on the DT-CWB link. Moreover, the effect of social approval on CWB was controlled. Data were collected among 659 white- and blue-collar workers. The hypotheses were tested by means of the PROCESS method. As expected in the hypotheses, high DT was found to be directly related to high CWB, and job control moderated (intensified) the link. Social support did not moderate the DT-CWB link. The moderated moderation effect was supported. Social support increases the moderation effect of job control on the DT-CWB link. The lowest level of CWB is observed when job control was low and social support was high.

Social Network Behavior and Engagement Within a Smoking Cessation Facebook Page.

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Cole-Lewis, Heather; Perotte, Adler; Galica, Kasia; Dreyer, Lindy; Griffith, Christopher; Schwarz, Mary; Yun, Christopher; Patrick, Heather; Coa, Kisha; Augustson, Erik

2016-08-02

Social media platforms are increasingly being used to support individuals in behavior change attempts, including smoking cessation. Examining the interactions of participants in health-related social media groups can help inform our understanding of how these groups can best be leveraged to facilitate behavior change. The aim of this study was to analyze patterns of participation, self-reported smoking cessation length, and interactions within the National Cancer Institutes' Facebook community for smoking cessation support. Our sample consisted of approximately 4243 individuals who interacted (eg, posted, commented) on the public Smokefree Women Facebook page during the time of data collection. In Phase 1, social network visualizations and centrality measures were used to evaluate network structure and engagement. In Phase 2, an inductive, thematic qualitative content analysis was conducted with a subsample of 500 individuals, and correlational analysis was used to determine how participant engagement was associated with self-reported session length. Between February 2013 and March 2014, there were 875 posts and 4088 comments from approximately 4243 participants. Social network visualizations revealed the moderator's role in keeping the community together and distributing the most active participants. Correlation analyses suggest that engagement in the network was significantly inversely associated with cessation status (Spearman correlation coefficient = -0.14, P=.03, N=243). The content analysis of 1698 posts from 500 randomly selected participants identified the most frequent interactions in the community as providing support (43%, n=721) and announcing number of days smoke free (41%, n=689). These findings highlight the importance of the moderator for network engagement and provide helpful insights into the patterns and types of interactions participants are engaging in. This study adds knowledge of how the social network of a smoking cessation community

The roles of social support in helping chinese women with antenatal depressive and anxiety symptoms cope with perceived stress.

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Lau, Ying; Wong, Daniel Fu Keung; Wang, Yuqiong; Kwong, Dennis Ho Keung; Wang, Ying

2014-10-01

A community-based sample of 755 pregnant Chinese women were recruited to test the direct and moderating effects of social support in mitigating perceived stress associated with antenatal depressive or anxiety symptoms. The Social Support Rating Scale, the Perceived Stress Scale, the Edinburgh Depressive Postnatal Scale and the Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale were used. Social support was found to have direct effects and moderating effects on the women's perceived stress on antenatal depressive and anxiety symptoms in multiple linear regression models. This knowledge of the separate effects of social support on behavioral health is important to psychiatric nurse in planning preventive interventions. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Social relations: network, support and relational strain

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Due, P; Holstein, B; Lund, Rikke

1999-01-01

We introduce a conceptual framework with social relations as the main concept and the structure and the function of social relations as subconcepts. The structure of social relations covers aspects of formal relations and social network. The function of social relations covers social support......,011. The postal questionnaires were answered by a random sample in each of the age groups. The results show marked age and gender differences in both the structure and the function of social relations. The social network, measured as weekly contacts, weakens with age and so does instrumental support. Emotional...... support is unrelated to this decline in contact frequency and appears to be at the same level for younger and older individuals. Relational strain, measured as conflicts, declines with age for all kinds of social relations. The weakening of the social network with age does not seem to affect the level...

Social networks, social support mechanisms, and quality of life after breast cancer diagnosis

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Kroenke, Candyce H; Kwan, Marilyn L.; Neugut, Alfred I.; Ergas, Isaac J.; Wright, Jaime D.; Caan, Bette J.; Hershman, Dawn; Kushi, Lawrence H.

2013-01-01

Purpose We examined mechanisms through which social relationships influence quality of life (QOL) in breast cancer survivors. Methods This study included 3,139 women from the Pathways Study who were diagnosed with breast cancer from 2006-2011 and provided data on social networks (presence of spouse or intimate partner, religious/social ties, volunteering, and numbers of close friends and relatives), social support (tangible, emotional/informational, affection, positive social interaction), and quality of life (QOL), measured by the FACT-B, approximately two months post-diagnosis. We used logistic models to evaluate associations between social network size, social support, and lower vs. higher than median QOL scores. We further stratified by stage at diagnosis and treatment. Results In multivariate-adjusted analyses, women who were characterized as socially isolated had significantly lower FACT-B (OR=2.18, 95%CI:1.72-2.77), physical well-being (WB) (OR=1.61, 95%CI:1.27-2.03), functional WB (OR=2.08, 95%CI:1.65-2.63), social WB (OR=3.46, 95%CI:2.73-4.39), and emotional WB (OR=1.67, 95%CI:1.33-2.11) scores and higher breast cancer symptoms (OR=1.48, 95%CI:1.18-1.87), compared with socially integrated women. Each social network member independently predicted higher QOL. Simultaneous adjustment for social networks and social support partially attenuated associations between social networks and QOL. The strongest mediator and type of social support that was most predictive of QOL outcomes was “positive social interaction”. However, each type of support was important depending on outcome, stage, and treatment status. Conclusions Larger social networks and greater social support were related to higher QOL after a diagnosis of breast cancer. Effective social support interventions need to evolve beyond social-emotional interventions and need to account for disease severity and treatment status. PMID:23657404

Consequences of early postnatal benzodiazepines exposure in rats. II. Social behavior

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Mikulecká, Anna; Šubrt, Martin; Pařízková, Martina; Mareš, Pavel; Kubová, Hana

2014-01-01

Roč. 8, May 8 (2014), s. 169 ISSN 1662-5153 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GBP304/12/G069; GA ČR(CZ) GA305/09/0846 Institutional support: RVO:67985823 Keywords : benzodiazepines * clonazepam * social behavior * development * rats Subject RIV: FH - Neurology Impact factor: 3.270, year: 2014

Physical activity and social support in adolescents: analysis of different types and sources of social support.

Science.gov (United States)

Mendonça, Gerfeson; Júnior, José Cazuza de Farias

2015-01-01

Little is known about the influence of different types and sources of social support on physical activity in adolescents. The aim of this study was to analyse the association between physical activity and different types and sources of social support in adolescents. The sample consisted of 2,859 adolescents between 14-19 years of age in the city of João Pessoa, in Northeastern Brazil. Physical activity was measured with a questionnaire and social support from parents and friends using a 10-item scale five for each group (type of support: encouragement, joint participation, watching, inviting, positive comments and transportation). Multivariable analysis showed that the types of support provided by parents associated with physical activity in adolescents were encouragement for females (P genders (males: P = 0.009; females: P physical activity varies according to its source, as well as the gender and age of the adolescents.

Clarifying Work-Family Intervention Processes: The Roles of Work-Family Conflict and Family-Supportive Supervisor Behaviors

Science.gov (United States)

Hammer, Leslie B.; Kossek, Ellen Ernst; Anger, W. Kent; Bodner, Todd; Zimmerman, Kristi L.

2011-01-01

Drawing on a conceptual model integrating research on training, work-family interventions, and social support, we conducted a quasi-experimental field study to assess the impact of a supervisor training and self-monitoring intervention designed to increase supervisors' use of family-supportive supervisor behaviors. Pre- and postintervention…

Sex-specific modulation of juvenile social play behavior by vasopressin and oxytocin depends on social context

Science.gov (United States)

Bredewold, Remco; Smith, Caroline J. W.; Dumais, Kelly M.; Veenema, Alexa H.

2014-01-01

We recently demonstrated that vasopressin (AVP) in the lateral septum modulates social play behavior differently in male and female juvenile rats. However, the extent to which different social contexts (i.e., exposure to an unfamiliar play partner in different environments) affect the regulation of social play remains largely unknown. Given that AVP and the closely related neuropeptide oxytocin (OXT) modulate social behavior as well as anxiety-like behavior, we hypothesized that these neuropeptides may regulate social play behavior differently in novel (novel cage) as opposed to familiar (home cage) social environments. Administration of the specific AVP V1a receptor (V1aR) antagonist (CH2)5Tyr(Me2)AVP into the lateral septum enhanced home cage social play behavior in males but reduced it in females, confirming our previous findings. These effects were context-specific because V1aR blockade did not alter novel cage social play behavior in either sex. Furthermore, social play in females was reduced by AVP in the novel cage and by OXT in the home cage. Additionally, females administered the specific OXT receptor antagonist desGly-NH2,d(CH2)5−[Tyr(Me)2,Thr4]OVT showed less social play in the novel as compared to the home cage. AVP enhanced anxiety-related behavior in males (tested on the elevated plus-maze), but failed to do so in females, suggesting that exogenous AVP alters social play and anxiety-related behavior via distinct and sex-specific mechanisms. Moreover, none of the other drug treatments that altered social play had an effect on anxiety, suggesting that these drug-induced behavioral alterations are relatively specific to social behavior. Overall, we showed that AVP and OXT systems in the lateral septum modulate social play in juvenile rats in neuropeptide-, sex- and social context-specific ways. These findings underscore the importance of considering not only sex, but also social context, in how AVP and OXT modulate social behavior. PMID:24982623

Sex-specific modulation of juvenile social play behavior by vasopressin and oxytocin depends on social context

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Remco eBredewold

2014-06-01

Full Text Available We recently demonstrated that vasopressin (AVP in the lateral septum modulates social play behavior differently in male and female juvenile rats. However, the extent to which different social contexts (i.e., exposure to an unfamiliar play partner in different environments affect the regulation of social play remains largely unknown. Given that AVP and the closely related neuropeptide oxytocin (OXT modulate social behavior as well as anxiety-like behavior, we hypothesized that these neuropeptides may regulate social play behavior differently in novel (novel cage as opposed to familiar (home cage social environments. Administration of the specific AVP V1a receptor (V1aR antagonist (CH25Tyr(Me2AVP into the lateral septum enhanced home cage social play behavior in males but reduced it in females, confirming our previous findings. These effects were context-specific because V1aR blockade did not alter novel cage social play behavior in either sex. Furthermore, social play in females was reduced by AVP in the novel cage and by OXT in the home cage. Additionally, females administered the specific OXT receptor antagonist desGly-NH2,d(CH25-[Tyr(Me2,Thr4]OVT showed less social play in the novel as compared to the home cage. AVP enhanced anxiety-related behavior in males (tested on the elevated plus-maze, but failed to do so in females, suggesting that exogenous AVP alters social play and anxiety-related behavior via distinct and sex-specific mechanisms. Moreover, none of the other drug treatments that altered social play had an effect on anxiety, suggesting that these drug-induced behavioral alterations are relatively specific to social behavior. Overall, we showed that AVP and OXT systems in the lateral septum modulate social play in juvenile rats in neuropeptide-, sex- and social context-specific ways. These findings underscore the importance of considering not only sex, but also social context, in how AVP and OXT modulate social behavior.

Physical Activity Participation: Social Cognitive Theory versus the Theories of Reasoned Action and Planned Behavior.

Science.gov (United States)

Dzewaltowski, David A; Noble, John M; Shaw, Jeff M

1990-12-01

Social cognitive theory and the theories of reasoned action and planned behavior were examined in the prediction of 4 weeks of physical activity participation. The theories of reasoned action and planned behavior were supported. Attitude and perceived control predicted intention, and intention predicted physical activity participation. The social cognitive theory variables significantly predicted physical activity participation, with self-efficacy and self-evaluation of the behavior significantly contributing to the prediction. The greater the confidence in participating in physical activity and the greater the satisfaction with present physical activity, the more physical activity performed. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that perceived control and intentions did not account for any unique variation in physical activity participation over self-efficacy. Therefore the social cognitive theory constructs were better predictors of physical activity than those from the theories of reasoned action and planned behavior.

Behavioral and social development of children born extremely premature

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Esbjørn, Barbara Hoff; Hansen, Bo Mølholm; Munck, Hanne

2004-01-01

A cohort of extremely prematurely born children and matched term controls was assessed at 5 years of age. The parents completed a questionnaire on their behavioral and social development. The purpose was to illuminate whether the children's general intellectual ability and parental sensitivity were...... associated with behavioral and social development. The index children exhibited more hyperactive behavior and had poorer social skills than the controls. Lower Full Scale IQ (FSIQ) was associated with outward reacting and hyperactive behavior and poorer social skills. Sensitive parenting was associated...... with less outward reacting and less hyperactive behavior. When controlling for differences in FSIQ and parental sensitivity, the index children persisted to have an increased risk of exhibiting hyperactive behavior but not poorer social skills. The index children with normal intellectual development...

Assessing the Social Skills and Problem Behaviors of Adolescents With Severe Disabilities Enrolled in General Education Classes.

Science.gov (United States)

Lyons, Gregory L; Huber, Heartley B; Carter, Erik W; Chen, Rui; Asmus, Jennifer M

2016-07-01

Although enhancing the social competence of students with severe disabilities has long remained a prominent focus of school-based intervention efforts, relatively little attention has focused on identifying the most critical social and behavioral needs of students during high school. We examined the social skills and problem behaviors of 137 adolescents with severe disabilities from the vantage point of both special educators and parents. We sought to identify areas of potential intervention need, explore factors associated with social skill and problem behavior ratings, and examine the extent to which teachers and parents converged in their assessments of these needs. Our findings indicate teachers and parents of high school students with severe disabilities rated social skills as considerably below average and problem behaviors as above average. In addition, lower social skills ratings were evident for students with greater support needs, lower levels of overall adaptive behavior, and a special education label of autism. We found moderate consistency in the degree to which teachers and parents aligned in their assessments of both social skills and problem behavior. We offer recommendations for assessment and intervention focused on strengthening the social competence of adolescents with severe disabilities within secondary school classrooms, as well as promising avenues for future research.

Changing health behaviors with social marketing.

Science.gov (United States)

Suarez-Almazor, M E

2011-08-01

Social marketing uses marketing techniques to promote healthy attitudes and behaviors. As in traditional marketing, the development and implementation of social marketing programs is based on the four P's: product, price, place, and promotion, but it also incorporates the partnership and participation of stakeholders to enhance public health and engage policy makers. The "product" in social marketing is generally a behavior, such as a change in lifestyle (e.g., diet) or an increase in a desired health practice (e.g., screening). In order for people to desire this product, it must offer a solution to a problem that is weighed with respect to the price to pay. The price is not just monetary, and it often involves giving something up, such as time (e.g., exercising) or a wanted, satisfying behavior (e.g., smoking). In its development phase, social marketing incorporates qualitative methods to create messages that are powerful and potentially effective. The implementation of the programs commonly involves mass campaigns with advertisement in various media. There have been a few social media campaigns targeting bone health that have been disseminated with substantial outreach. However, these have not been systematically evaluated, specifically with respect to change in behavior and health outcomes. Future campaigns should identify target behaviors that are amenable to change such as bone mass measurement screening or exercise. Audience segmentation will be crucial, since a message for young women to increase peak bone mass would be very different from a message for older individuals who have just experienced a fracture. Campaigns should involve key stakeholders, including policy makers, health providers, and the public. Finally, success must be carefully evaluated, not just by the outreach of the campaign, but also by a change in relevant behaviors and a decrease in deleterious health outcomes.

Course of social support and relationships between social support and patients' depressive symptoms in the first 3 years post-stroke

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kruithof, Willeke J.; Post, Marcel W. M.; van Leeuwen, Christel M.; Schepers, Vera P. M.; van den Bos, Geertrudis A. M.; Visser-Meily, Johanna M. A.

2015-01-01

To describe the course of social support (everyday support, support in problem situations and esteem support) from initial inpatient rehabilitation until 3 years post-stroke and to examine the cross-sectional and longitudinal relationships of social support with depressive symptoms. Prospective

Course of social support and relationships between social support and patients’ depressive symptoms in the first 3 years post-stroke

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kruithof, Willeke J.; Post, Marcel W. M.; van Leeuwen, Christel M.; Schepers, Vera P. M.; van den Bos, Geertrudis A. M.; Visser-Meily, Johanna M. A.

Objective: To describe the course of social support (everyday support, support in problem situations and esteem support) from initial inpatient rehabilitation until 3 years post-stroke and to examine the cross-sectional and longitudinal relationships of social support with depressive symptoms.

Social relationships and social support among post-war youth in Northern Uganda.

Science.gov (United States)

De Nutte, Leen; Okello, James; Derluyn, Ilse

2017-08-01

Although social relationships and social support are salient factors for post-war adolescents' psychosocial coping and adjustment, there is only limited information regarding war-affected adolescents' views on social support and the relationships within which social support is provided. This study therefore explored both elements among a clinical sample of 20 adolescents living in post-war Northern Uganda. Following Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis, we found a prominent role of the biological mother and other primary biological family members in the upbringing of our participants. Spiritual and material support were perceived to be the most important type of support, respectively, while the adolescents were growing up and in their current lives. These findings provide support for the perception that caregiving systems are adaptable to particular sociocultural contexts. Further, the importance of particular functions of social support could signify a potentially selective buffering effect of these functions in adverse contexts. Because of the importance of the primary biological family and the salient role of parent-child relationships in the face of adversity, future research needs to focus on this particular kind of social relationship in contexts of prolonged collective violence. © 2015 International Union of Psychological Science.

THE MEDIATING ROLE OF ORGANIZATIONAL TRUST IN THE EFFECT OF PERCEIVED ORGANIZATIONAL SUPPORT ON ORGANIZATIONAL CITIZENSHIP BEHAVIOR

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ozan BÜYÜKYILMAZ

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This study investigates direct and indirect relationships between perceived organizational support, organizational trust and organizational citizenship behavior. The aim of the study is to determine the effect of employee perceptions of organizational support on the tendency to exhibit organizational citizenship behavior and to determine the mediating role of perceived trust in perceived organizational support and organizational citizenship behavior relationship. The data used in the study were gathered by questionnaire from 228 graduate students studying at the Karabuk University Institute of Social Sciences and at the same time working in state and private institutions. In the process of testing the hypotheses, path analysis was used in the context of structural equation modeling. As a result of the study, it was determined that organizational trust fully mediates the relationship between perceived organizational support and the dimensions of altruism, conscientiousness and sportsmanship of organizational citizenship behavior and partially mediates the relationship between perceived organizational support and the dimensions of courtesy and civic virtue of organizational citizenship behavior.

Physiological and behavioral responses to the social environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Davis, D.E.

1978-01-01

Physiological and behavioral reactions to the social environment are mediated in nature principally through aggressive interactions, although in some cases other aspects of the environment such as temperature or predators are important. Observations from 1946-50 of changes in populations of rats after alteration of social conditions suggested the hypothesis that changes in birth and mortality rates followed aggressive interactions. The pituitary-adrenal-gonadal mechanism provided a process that could be tested in three types of conditions: laboratory, simulated field, and field. Changes in social environment can result from: seasonal changes in conditions; appearance of transients; habitat changes due to succession; and increase of population. It became apparent from laboratory research that a physiological feedback from aggressive behavior could reduce birth rates and increase mortality rates. Studies in nature showed that a reduction of Norway rat population by 38 percent was followed by a reduction of adrenal weight by 32 percent. Also as the population of rats increased the weight of the adrenals increased. A comprehensive study of woodchucks, started in 1957, showed that the alteration of age composition and the increase in immigration was associated with increased adrenal function. Research by others on lemmings shows that the adrenals at the peak of a population fluctuation are larger and produce more hormones than at the low point. No evidence was obtained to support the hypothesis that genetic selection for aggressive behavior within the population occurs during the increase or decline of a population. The changes occur within an individual. The future of studies of responses to the social environment will require experimental programs in nature that last for a decade or more, long enough to monitor changes in numbers under a variety of conditions

E-mail support as an adjunct to cognitive-behavioral group therapy for social anxiety disorder: Impact on dropout and outcome.

Science.gov (United States)

Delsignore, Aba; Rufer, Michael; Emmerich, Juliane; Weidt, Steffi; Brühl, Annette Beatrix; Moergeli, Hanspeter

2016-10-30

The present study evaluates the impact of semi-individualized e-mail support as an adjunct to cognitive behavioral group therapy (CBGT) for social anxiety disorder (SAD) on dropout and outcome. The effectiveness of additional semi-individualized e-mail support was evaluated for the whole sample and for a subsample of patients at risk of dropping out of therapy. A total of 91 patients with SAD were allocated either to the intervention condition (CBGT with e-mail support), or to the control condition (CBGT without e-mail support). Anxiety symptoms, depression, global symptomatology and life satisfaction were assessed at pretreatment, post-treatment and follow-up (3, 6 and 12 months). From pre-treatment to post-treatment, both groups improved significantly on all symptom measures. Therapy gains were maintained at the 1-year follow-up. Subsample analyses showed that CBGT+e-mail was more effective than CGBT alone in reducing symptom severity among patients missing at least two therapy sessions. Additionally, in this subgroup, those receiving additional e-mail support showed a tendency towards lower dropout rates. Based on the results of this study, semi-individualized e-mail support between sessions seems to enhance the effectiveness of CBGT for SAD patients at risk of dropping out of treatment and should be considered as an additional tool in clinical practice. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effects of Behavioral and Social Class Information on Social Judgment.

Science.gov (United States)

Baron, Reuben M.; And Others

1995-01-01

Investigated the role of disconfirming behavioral information and the limits on social class schema effects. Using a Bayesian model of social perception, it was found that unambiguous, relevant stimulus information influenced judgments. Although social class information did not affect relevant stimulus information, it did sway judgments in…

Modification of feeding circuits in the evolution of social behavior.

Science.gov (United States)

Fischer, Eva K; O'Connell, Lauren A

2017-01-01

Adaptive trade-offs between foraging and social behavior intuitively explain many aspects of individual decision-making. Given the intimate connection between social behavior and feeding/foraging at the behavioral level, we propose that social behaviors are linked to foraging on a mechanistic level, and that modifications of feeding circuits are crucial in the evolution of complex social behaviors. In this Review, we first highlight the overlap between mechanisms underlying foraging and parental care and then expand this argument to consider the manipulation of feeding-related pathways in the evolution of other complex social behaviors. We include examples from diverse taxa to highlight that the independent evolution of complex social behaviors is a variation on the theme of feeding circuit modification. © 2017. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

The Assessment of Social Support and Self-Care Requisites for Preventing Diabetic Foot Ulcer in Diabetic Foot Patients

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammad Taher

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Background and Objectives: Diabetic foot as one of the most common complications of diabetes is involved in more than %25 of diabetic patients’ lives, and if not treated properly can lead to amputation up to %20. The lack of self-care is the underlying cause of mortality, morbidity and chronic complications of diabetes. Identification and rectifying of diabetic foot care needs of patients can additionally reduce readmission; also, %85 of diabetic foot problems can be prevented. Materials and Methods: In this descriptive study, 130patients with diabetic foot from Shahid Modarres hospital were selected using census method. Data in forms of demographic questionnaire, self-care requisites assessment tool for preventing diabetic foot ulcer, and Social Support Behavior Scale were completed by patients and then were collected. Data were analyzed by SPSS version 16. Results: In this study, a significant relationship was found between self-care and social support (P<0.05. This means that people with better social support reported better self-care than those with weaker social support. A significant relationship in level of education and monthly income with self-care was seen, as well as in level of education, monthly income and marital status with social support (P<0.001. Conclusions: The results showed that social support can be considered as an effective factor in individual self-care behaviors, and with regard to this factor in educational, treatment and care programs of patients, can improve their self-care, in addition to decreasing economic costs, and improve their qualities of lives as well.

Effects of MDMA Injections on the Behavior of Socially-Housed Long-Tailed Macaques (Macaca fascicularis).

Science.gov (United States)

Ballesta, Sébastien; Reymond, Gilles; Pozzobon, Matthieu; Duhamel, Jean-René

2016-01-01

3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methyl amphetamine (MDMA) is one of the few known molecules to increase human and rodent prosocial behaviors. However, this effect has never been assessed on the social behavior of non-human primates. In our study, we subcutaneously injected three different doses of MDMA (1.0, 1.5 or 2.0mg/kg) to a group of three, socially housed, young male long-tailed macaques. More than 200 hours of behavioral data were recorded, during 68 behavioral sessions, by an automatic color-based video device that tracked the 3D positions of each animal and of a toy. This data was then categorized into 5 exclusive behaviors (resting, locomotion, foraging, social contact and object play). In addition, received and given social grooming was manually scored. Results show several significant dose-dependent behavioral effects. At 1.5mg/kg only, MDMA induces a significant increase in social grooming behavior, thus confirming the prosocial effect of MDMA in macaques. Additionally, at 1.5 and 2.0 mg/kg MDMA injection substantially decreases foraging behavior, which is consistent with the known anorexigenic effect of this compound. Furthermore, at 2.0 mg/kg MDMA injection induces an increase in locomotor behavior, which is also in accordance with its known stimulant property. Interestingly, MDMA injected at 1.0mg/kg increases the rate of object play, which might be interpreted as a decrease of the inhibition to manipulate a unique object in presence of others, or, as an increase of the intrinsic motivation to manipulate this object. Together, our results support the effectiveness of MDMA to study the complex neurobiology of primates' social behaviors.

Effects of MDMA Injections on the Behavior of Socially-Housed Long-Tailed Macaques (Macaca fascicularis.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sébastien Ballesta

Full Text Available 3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methyl amphetamine (MDMA is one of the few known molecules to increase human and rodent prosocial behaviors. However, this effect has never been assessed on the social behavior of non-human primates. In our study, we subcutaneously injected three different doses of MDMA (1.0, 1.5 or 2.0mg/kg to a group of three, socially housed, young male long-tailed macaques. More than 200 hours of behavioral data were recorded, during 68 behavioral sessions, by an automatic color-based video device that tracked the 3D positions of each animal and of a toy. This data was then categorized into 5 exclusive behaviors (resting, locomotion, foraging, social contact and object play. In addition, received and given social grooming was manually scored. Results show several significant dose-dependent behavioral effects. At 1.5mg/kg only, MDMA induces a significant increase in social grooming behavior, thus confirming the prosocial effect of MDMA in macaques. Additionally, at 1.5 and 2.0 mg/kg MDMA injection substantially decreases foraging behavior, which is consistent with the known anorexigenic effect of this compound. Furthermore, at 2.0 mg/kg MDMA injection induces an increase in locomotor behavior, which is also in accordance with its known stimulant property. Interestingly, MDMA injected at 1.0mg/kg increases the rate of object play, which might be interpreted as a decrease of the inhibition to manipulate a unique object in presence of others, or, as an increase of the intrinsic motivation to manipulate this object. Together, our results support the effectiveness of MDMA to study the complex neurobiology of primates' social behaviors.

The Behavioral Health Role in Nursing Facility Social Work.

Science.gov (United States)

Myers, Dennis R; Rogers, Robin K; LeCrone, Harold H; Kelley, Katherine

2017-09-01

Types of compromised resident behaviors licensed nursing facility social workers encounter, the behavioral health role they enact, and effective practices they apply have not been the subject of systematic investigation. Analyses of 20 in-depth interviews with Bachelor of Social Work (BSW)/Master of Social Work (MSW) social workers averaging 8.8 years of experience identified frequently occurring resident behaviors: physical and verbal aggression/disruption, passive disruption, socially and sexually inappropriateness. Six functions of the behavioral health role were care management, educating, investigating, preventing, mediating, and advocating. Skills most frequently applied were attention/affirmation/active listening, assessment, behavior management, building relationship, teamwork, and redirection. Narratives revealed role rewards as well as knowledge deficits, organizational barriers, personal maltreatment, and frustrations. Respondents offered perspectives and prescriptions for behavioral health practice in this setting. The findings expand understanding of the behavioral health role and provide an empirical basis for more research in this area. Recommendations, including educational competencies, are offered.

fMRI Study of Social Anxiety during Social Ostracism with and without Emotional Support.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yoshiko Nishiyama

Full Text Available Social anxiety is characterized by an excessive fear of being embarrassed in social interactions or social performance situations. Emotional support can help to decrease or diminish social distress. Such support may play an important role at different points of social interaction. However, it is unclear how the beneficial effects of social support are represented in the brains of socially anxious individuals. To explore this, we used the same paradigm previously used to examine the effects of emotional support on social pain caused by exclusion. Undergraduates (n = 46 showing a wide range of social anxiety scores underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI while participating in a Cyberball game. Participants were initially included and later excluded from the game. In the latter half of the session in which participants were excluded, they were provided with supportive messages. In line with our previous work, we found that social exclusion led to increased anterior cingulate cortex (ACC activity, whereas emotional support led to increased left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC activity. Despite validation of the paradigm, social anxiety was not associated with increased ACC activity during social exclusion, or during perceived emotional support. Instead, fear of negative evaluation as assessed by the Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation (BFNE scale showed positive associations with left DLPFC activation while receiving emotional support, compared to while being socially excluded. The more socially anxious an individual was, the greater was the left DLPFC activity increased during receipt of messages. This suggests that highly socially anxious people still have the ability to perceive social support, but that they are nevertheless susceptible to negative evaluation by others.

fMRI Study of Social Anxiety during Social Ostracism with and without Emotional Support.

Science.gov (United States)

Nishiyama, Yoshiko; Okamoto, Yasumasa; Kunisato, Yoshihiko; Okada, Go; Yoshimura, Shinpei; Kanai, Yoshihiro; Yamamura, Takanao; Yoshino, Atsuo; Jinnin, Ran; Takagaki, Koki; Onoda, Keiichi; Yamawaki, Shigeto

2015-01-01

Social anxiety is characterized by an excessive fear of being embarrassed in social interactions or social performance situations. Emotional support can help to decrease or diminish social distress. Such support may play an important role at different points of social interaction. However, it is unclear how the beneficial effects of social support are represented in the brains of socially anxious individuals. To explore this, we used the same paradigm previously used to examine the effects of emotional support on social pain caused by exclusion. Undergraduates (n = 46) showing a wide range of social anxiety scores underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while participating in a Cyberball game. Participants were initially included and later excluded from the game. In the latter half of the session in which participants were excluded, they were provided with supportive messages. In line with our previous work, we found that social exclusion led to increased anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) activity, whereas emotional support led to increased left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) activity. Despite validation of the paradigm, social anxiety was not associated with increased ACC activity during social exclusion, or during perceived emotional support. Instead, fear of negative evaluation as assessed by the Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation (BFNE) scale showed positive associations with left DLPFC activation while receiving emotional support, compared to while being socially excluded. The more socially anxious an individual was, the greater was the left DLPFC activity increased during receipt of messages. This suggests that highly socially anxious people still have the ability to perceive social support, but that they are nevertheless susceptible to negative evaluation by others.