Perceived Social Support and Manifested Psychopathological Symptoms of Caregivers of Children with Psychological Illness

This study was carried out to observe the influence of Perceived Social Support (PSS) on manifested psychopathological symptoms of selected caregivers of children diagnosed with psychological illness attending a Neuropsychiatric hospital in Lagos Nigeria. A total of 309 participants (mean age = 41.2 years) were purposively selected during clinic appointment days and responded to Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) and Awaritefe Psychological Index (API Form X). Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. A 17.8% prevalence of severe general psychopathology among the participants was revealed. Also PSS was found to independently and significantly predict insomnia (β = -.202, p = .000) reporting an  of .041; mood disorder (β = -.345, p = .000) with an  of .119, general somatic disorder (β = -.179, p = .002) with an  of .032, and general psychopathology (β = -.254, p = .000) with an  of .065. T here is a high prevalence of psychopathological symptoms among the participants, and that the beta scores indicate strong negative associations between PSS and insomnia, mood disorder, general somatic disorder and general psychopathological symptoms.