THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SOCIAL SUPPORT AND LIFE SATISFACTION AS A FUNCTION OF FAMILY-STRUCTURE

The present study focuses on the discriminant validity of 4 types of s ocial support and the utility of distinguishing support provision from different referents. Hypotheses about the influence of family structu re on the relationship between social support and life satisfaction we re formally evaluated. The respondents were 512 parents, including 176 married mothers, 172 married fathers, and 164 single mothers. Results corroborate the importance of distinguishing who provides the social support. A cluster analysis revealed distinct referent clusters in whi ch the correlational structure suggested a degree of discriminant vali dity between referents. An analysis of mean levels of support indicate d that individuals tended to receive more support from some referents than from others. In addition, the correlations of social support with life satisfaction differed depending on the referent providing the su pport.