EX-PARTNER, FAMILY, FRIENDS, AND OTHER RELATIONSHIPS - THEIR ROLE WITHIN THE SOCIAL NETWORK OF LONG-TERM SINGLE MOTHERS

This study explores various aspects of support in the social network o f long-term single mothers: the nature of expected help and of offered support, the attitudes behind support, the strategies for requesting help, the reluctance to ask, the efficacy of received help, the percei ved refusals, and the behaviors judged as harmful. Thirty women separa ted for at least two years with a child aged under 10 were chosen foll owing the snowball technique, and participated in this study. The cont ent analysis of the semi-structured interviews shows how the dynamics of social support varies according to the relationship to the target p erson: ex-partner, family, friends, or ''other relationships.'' For in stance the ex-partner, when mentioned, rarely offered the expected sup port and was perceived as harmful. Family members often lived up to th eir expectations, but women were generally very reluctant to ask them for help. Friends were the most efficient helpers and were the main pe rsons from whom mothers expected cognitive support. The ''other relati onships'' offered a certain amount of help, especially at die instrume ntal level but, as with the ex-partner, they were frequently perceived as harmful. Finally, we advocate for an ''ecological'' approach to me asure social support in die context of the interaction in which it occ urs.