To explore whether stress experienced during childhood and levels of perceived social support are predictors of resilience.

Fitzpatrick, Eleanor (2018) To explore whether stress experienced during childhood and levels of perceived social support are predictors of resilience. Manchester Metropolitan University. (Unpublished)

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Abstract

Research has been conducted to assess what makes individuals resilient. When considering resilience, it has been highlighted that childhood adversity can often be implicated and individuals have displayed positive outcomes in the face of this. Social support has also been implicated in this relationship and has been suggested to act as a mediating role. The current study attempted to find a relationship between these three variables and find childhood stress and social support to be significant predictors of resilience. Undergraduate students (N = 137) were used for this study and they were recruited via convenience sampling. Participants completed the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) and Likert scales developed by the researcher to measure levels of childhood stress and perceived social support during these times. The data underwent a multiple linear regression and it was found that childhood stress was not a significant predictor of resilience but social support was. The report discusses the findings of this study and its strengths and weaknesses. Furthermore, the practical applications of these findings are highlighted and suggestions are made for future research in this area.