Impact of Perceived Social Support and Social Skills on Adolescent’s Self- Esteem: The Social Support Theory Perspective

Abstract

Adolescents place more emphasis on social relationships which help them to develop a positive selfview. Based upon social support theory, this study aimed to examine the impact of perceived social support, measured from three trajectories (perceived family support, perceived friends support, and perceived significant other support) on adolescent’s self-esteem and the moderating effect of social skills. To attain this objective, we developed a conceptual model and collected data from 253 bachelor students in a state University, Sri Lanka. Data were analyzed with the aid of SmartPLS 3.3. The results of this study showed that perceived support from family, friends, and significant others significantly influences adolescents' self-esteem development. Moreover, the results of moderation analysis showed that social skills moderate only the association between perceived friend support and selfesteem. The study's data collection was limited to one point in time, and we could not capture how self-esteem develops over time. Thus, future researchers need to examine our research model over different time points. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.