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The relationship between sources and functions of social support and dimensions of child‐ and parent‐related stress
Author(s) -
Guralnick M. J.,
Hammond M. A.,
Neville B.,
Connor R. T.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
journal of intellectual disability research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.941
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1365-2788
pISSN - 0964-2633
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2788.2008.01073.x
Subject(s) - psychology , developmental psychology , stress (linguistics) , social support , clinical psychology , social psychology , linguistics , philosophy
Background In this longitudinal study, we examined the relationship between the sources and functions of social support and dimensions of child‐ and parent‐related stress for mothers of young children with mild developmental delays. Methods Sixty‐three mothers completed assessments of stress and support at two time points. Results Multiple regression analyses revealed that parenting support during the early childhood period (i.e. advice on problems specific to their child and assistance with child care responsibilities), irrespective of source, consistently predicted most dimensions of parent stress assessed during the early elementary years and contributed unique variance. General support (i.e. primarily emotional support and validation) from various sources had other, less widespread effects on parental stress. Conclusions The multidimensional perspective of the construct of social support that emerged suggested mechanisms mediating the relationship between support and stress and provided a framework for intervention.