Differential effects of support providers on adolescents' mental health

This prospective study examined the differential effects of parent, teacher, and peer social support on depression and self-esteem of 217 adolescents, ages 15 to 18. Results indicate that female adolescents perceived significantly more support from friends than male adolescents did, whereas male adolescents perceived significantly more support from fathers than female adolescents did. No gender differences were found in perceptions of support from mothers or teachers. Boys and girls perceived the least amount of support from fathers compared with other providers. Multisample structural equation models were invariant across female and male groups for the effects of support providers on each outcome. The joint effects of the support providers explained a significant amount of variance in time 2 depression and self-esteem, after controlling for both at time 1, suggesting that social support has important effects on symptoms. The separate effects of mothers, teachers, and friends had similarly sized, significant negative effects on time 2 depression. Self-esteem was significantly, positively affected by friend and teacher support. Key words: adolescence; depression! mental health; self-esteem; social support ********** Current theory and research suggest that not all social support is the same. Two important influences on the effectiveness of support are the characteristics of the provider and of the recipient (Antonucci, 1983). For example, alternate support providers such as parents and peers differentially affect adolescent outcomes such as mental health and academic achievement (Barone, Iscoe, Trickett, & Schmid, 1998; Garnefski & Diekstra, 1996; Richman, Rosenfeld, & Bowen, 1998; Wentzel, 1998). In terms of recipient characteristics, research has consistently found gender differences in the amount and kind of support that adolescents receive and from whom they receive it (Berndt, 1982; Cauce, Reid, Landesman, & Gonzales, 1990; Colarossi, 2001; Furman & Buhrmester, 1992; Levitt, Guacci-Franco, & Levitt, 1993). For example, girls receive more support from peers than boys do, whereas boys receive more support from family sources than girls do. If these supporters have different impacts on developmental outcomes, then balance and appropriate use are the challenges for adolescents as they begin to diversify their support networks. Unfortunately, there is a paucity of studies that simultaneously contrast the effects of multiple providers and recipients on specific adolescent outcomes. A descriptive study published recently in Social Work Research (Colarossi, 2001) related findings from a sample of adolescents that showed gender differences in the amount and satisfaction of support received by various providers. The prospective study presented here follows up the same sample to test the differential relation of support from three contexts (that is, family, school, and peers) on depression and self-esteem with adolescents over the course of one year. Multisample structural equation models were used to examine gender differences in the predictive models. THEORETICAL FOUNDATION This study builds on a foundation of theory and research describing developmental processes, gender differences in social support, and the effects of support on mental health. Kahn and Antonucci's (1980) Convoy Model of social support posits that social support develops over time from person-environment interaction that involves attachment processes, social role requirements, and characteristics of the social network composition and its support provisions. These interactions have aspects of both stability and change over the life course, in which social context is an important moderating factor in addition to an individual's personality style, role demands, and emotional and behavioral responses. This life-course perspective is important for several reasons. An individual's need for social support varies with age-related changes such as dependence on others, social roles related to occupational and social status (for example, student, parent, employee or employer, or friend or spouse), and changes in residence (for example, living with family, living on college campus, or living in different neighborhoods). …