Social Support and Quality of Social Interactions among Korean and Korean American Students in University-Affiliated Religious Organizations in the United States
- Resource Type
- Article
- Authors
- 김민아; Ann-Marie Yamada; Eric Rice; Karen Kyeung hae Lee
- Source
- 한국사회복지조사연구, 49(0), pp.1-28 Jun, 2016
- Subject
- 사회복지학
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 1975-0129
The study of informal support networks in religious organizations is important because these organizations are a supplemental or alternate sources of assistance for Koreans living in the United States. This study examined the exchange of emotional and informational support as related to the quality of social interactions of 131 Korean heritage students attending university-affiliated Korean Christian organizations in the United States. Four hypothesized relationships—(1) receiving emotional support and positive interactions; (2) receiving informational support and positive interactions; (3) providing emotional support and negative interactions and (4) providing informational support and negative interactions —were tested using hierarchical multiple regression analyses. Study results indicate that the association between support exchange and social interactions varied according to the type of support in which Korean students engaged in Korean Christian organizations. The results showed a positive linear relationship between receiving emotional support and positive interactions, whereas there was a curvilinear relationship between receiving informational support and positive interactions. Providing emotional support had a positive linear relationship with negative interactions, whereas providing informational support showed no significant linear relationships with negative interactions. Greater understanding of the potential benefits and stressors associated with social support in Korean Christian organizations may lead to more informed social work practice addressing the needs of high-risk cohorts of both Korean international and Korean American students.