Social support was assessed using items adapted from the Social Support Survey of the RAND Medical Outcomes Study (Hays et al., 1995). This consisted of five subscales, each containing one item: Tangible Support (i.e., support in the event of confinement to bed), Emotional/Information Support (i.e., support when good advice during a crisis is needed), Positive Social Interaction (i.e., availability of someone to get together with for relaxation), Affectionate Support (i.e., availability of someone to love you and make your feel wanted), and an additional item regarding availability of someone to confide in or talk about your problems. Participants were asked to indicate how often someone was available to provide the above-mentioned support, in the past 12 months. Participants were given the response option of “none of the time,” “some of the time,” “most of the time,” “all of the time,” or “I don't know.” A sum score was computed for individuals with more than three non-missing indicators, with lower scores indicating less support.
