The mediating role of self-esteem in the relationship between social support and affective experiences among undergraduate students in Turkey


Yıldırım M., Çağış Z. G., Aziz I. A., Rizzo A., Turan M. E., Nucera G., ...Daha Fazla

Acta Psychologica, cilt.250, 2024 (SSCI, Scopus) identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 250
  • Basım Tarihi: 2024
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1016/j.actpsy.2024.104540
  • Dergi Adı: Acta Psychologica
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus
  • Anahtar Kelimeler: Negative experiences, Positive experiences, Self-esteem, Social support, Turkish undergraduate students
  • İnönü Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

Background: While many studies have explored the direct impact of psychosocial factors on affective experiences, there remains a gap in understanding the specific factors that mediate the relationships between social support and affective outcomes. Objective: The present study aimed to investigate the mediating role of self-esteem in the association between social support and affective experiences among a sample of Turkish undergraduate students. Method: The study utilized an online survey to recruit 300 participants, with a majority of female participants (59.33 %). The age of the participants ranged from 18 to 28 years (Mage = 21.15; SD = 1.86). Participants completed the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (Zimet et al., 1988), the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (Rosenberg, 1965), and the Scales of Positive and Negative Experiences (Diener et al., 2010). Results: The mediation model with bootstrapping technique analysis revealed that social support was significantly associated with self-esteem and positive affective experiences. Self-esteem was also significantly associated with both positive and negative affective experiences. Additionally, self-esteem was found to partially mediate the relationship between social support and both positive and negative affective experiences, indicating that self-esteem acted as a mediator in these associations. Conclusions: These findings contribute to our understanding of the association between social support, self-esteem, and affective experiences and have implications for the development and implementation of interventions aimed at enhancing the positive effects of social support and self-esteem on affective experiences among young adults.