DIFFERENCES IN SOCIAL SUPPORT AND LONELINESS IN ADOLESCENTS ACCORDINGTO DEVELOPMENTAL STAGE AND GENDER

The purpose of this study was to examine differences in both perceived social support and loneliness according to the three stages of adoles cent development (early, middle, and late), as determined by chronolog ical age and gender. The sample consisted of 113 early adolescents, 10 6 middle adolescents, and 106 late adolescents. Data were collected in classroom settings. All participants responded to the PRQ85-Part II, A Social Support Measure; the Revised UCLA Loneliness Scale; and a dem ographic data sheet. Results of the study, which used the two-way anal ysis of variance, indicated that there were no statistically significa nt differences in perceived social support or loneliness across the th ree stages of adolescence. Findings also indicated that girls reported statistically significantly higher levels of perceived social support than boys; however, there were no statistically significant gender di fferences in loneliness.