Ethnicity and social support during pregnancy

Data from two multi-ethnic prospective studies of African American, Latina, and non-Hispanic White pregnant women were used to examine the influence o f contextual factors on social support processes during pregnancy. Multiple types of support (perceived support, received support, support satisfactio n, network support) and sources of support (baby's father, family, friends) were assessed. The role of ethnicity in social support was examined after controlling for the contribution of related contextual factors (SES, marita l status, age, parity, employment) to these processes. The impact of ethnic ity and related contextual factors differed across sources of social suppor t. Ethnic differences in support from family and friends, but not from the baby's father, emerged. However, marital status was a consistent predictor of support from the baby's father, and SES was a consistent predictor of su pport from friends. Overall, the findings of two studies suggest that altho ugh ethnicity is associated with support friends and family, other contextu al factors, such as marital status and SES, influence support processes dur ing pregnancy.