Validating the support gaps framework: Longitudinal effects and moderators of experiencing deficits and surpluses during supportive interactions

摘要

Support gaps, or discrepancies between the support a person desires and receives, haveimplications for how effectively people cope with stressors. Existing research commonly usesrecall procedures to assess support gaps, considers only immediate outcomes, and does notoften assess predictors of gaps. To validate the support gaps framework, participants(N = 200) assessed their desires for support regarding an identity-threatening stressor justprior to a laboratory-based interaction and received support immediately following theinteraction. Longitudinal outcomes and the moderating role of ability and motivationwere also considered. Participants experienced support gaps, which were associated withtheir rumination and affect improvement three weeks after the interaction. Ability andmotivation influenced the size of support gaps, and ability moderated the effect of a gap inesteem support on participants’ affect improvement. Implications related to an emergingtheory of support gaps and the dual-process theory of supportive communication outcomesare discussed.