In Australia, there are many ways to find social support. One of the most common forms is through family and friends. However, there is also a variety of formal and informal programs that can help you in your time of need. A variety of services are available, from family law services to free programs for Indigenous people.
Forced migration may also increase your vulnerability to psychological distress and can lead to loss of social support. In order to understand these effects, researchers looked at the association between social support and mental health among humanitarian migrants. They also looked at the effect of age, gender, and migration pathway on the association between social support and mental health.
One study found that humanitarian migrants from different cultural backgrounds received different levels of social support. Those from African communities may have received more support because of government grants that aimed at their community. However, they received less emotional and informational support. Additionally, humanitarian migrants who are older may have less access to social support, because they may be unfamiliar with the Australian system.
Social support services in Australia can be measured using the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS). Its psychometric properties and reliability have been demonstrated in large samples of Australian adults. This means that MSPSS is an important tool for assessing social support in Australia. Moreover, it can be applied in national surveys to provide evidence of social support among Australians.
Another study found that social support is also related to age and gender. Although the differences in social support are not statistically significant, some factors may play a role in determining whether or not a person is able to find social support. Age, gender and migration pathway were significant predictors. However, the relationship between social support and psychological distress varied by migration pathway and gender.
