The role of support seeker expectations in supportive communication

ABSTRACT

This project examined the influence of social support seekers’ expectations on their perceptions, behaviors, and the outcomes of supportive conversations. An experiment was conducted in which participants were grouped into dyads and randomly assigned to the role of support seeker or support provider. Seekers’ expectations about the (un)helpfulness of providers were manipulated prior to their conversation. Seekers’ expectations influenced their evaluations of the quality of providers’ feedback and, ultimately, the degree to which their emotional distress was reduced. Although seekers’ expectations did not impact the messages they produced, seekers’ discussion volume, use of approach behaviors, and use of avoidance behaviors tended to be associated with the level of person centeredness in providers' feedback.

KEYWORDS:

• Social support
• supportive communication
• support seeking
• behavioral confirmation
• verbal person centeredness

Acknowledgements

The authors thank the editor, Dr Paul Schrodt, and three anonymous reviewers for their helpful feedback on this project.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).