| This study was a scale development study, which examined adolescents' reported use of strategies for obtaining social support from teachers, classmates, and close friends. Group differences in strategy usage and predictors of the frequency and importance of social support were also studied. Data were collected from a diverse group of 245 seventh- and eighth-graders using the Strategies for Obtaining Social Support scale, the Child and Adolescent Social Support Scale, and the Social Skills Rating System - Student Form. Results indicated that adolescents' use of strategies could be grouped into four or five main strategy types or orientations, depending on the targeted source of support. Adolescents' use of strategies included both direct and indirect strategies, with strategy usage varying as a function of the source from whom the social support was being sought. Strategies were used most often with close friends, with higher perceived effectiveness when compared to classmates and teachers. Differentiated strategy usage was interpreted within the context of the relationship between the individual seeking to obtain social support and the person providing social support.; Multivariate analyses revealed group differences in adolescents' strategy usage. Males and females were found to significantly differ in their use of strategies for obtaining social support from close friends and classmates. Additionally, adolescents with lower levels of social support reported using fewer strategies, lower frequency of strategy use, and lower perceived effectiveness of the strategies for obtaining social support from teachers, classmates, and close friends. Therefore, it was theorized that adolescents' reported use of strategies may effect their perceptions of the availability of social support. Finally, the results of regression analyses indicated that social skills, strategy usage, and adolescents' sex were found to be significant predictors of social support frequency, and social skills and strategy usage were significant predictors of social support importance ratings. Collectively, the findings provided psychometric information about a scale for examining adolescents' use of strategies for obtaining social support and provided new information about adolescents' strategy usage in relation to social support and social skills. |
