title: Culture and social support: who seeks it and why?
abstract: Are Asians and Asian Americans more or less likely to seek social support for dealing with stress than European Americans? On the one hand, the collectivist orientation of Asian countries might favor the sharing of stressful problems; on the other hand, efforts to maintain group harmony might discourage such efforts. In 2 studies, Koreans (Study 1) and Asians and Asian Americans in the United States (Study 2) reported using social support less for coping with stress than European Americans. Study 3 examined potential explanations for these effects and revealed that relationship concerns accounted for the cultural differences in use of support seeking. Discussion centers on the potential benefits and liabilities of seeking social support.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA. taylors@psych.ucla.edu
authors.forename: Shelley E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.forename: David K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Sherman
authors.forename: Heejung S
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Johanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jarcho
authors.forename: Kaori
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Takagi
authors.forename: Melissa S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Dunagan
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001213:Asian; D044466:Asian People; D003469:Culture; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D012944:Social Support; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000628:therapy*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires