Support Network Typology and Psychological Well-Being Among Young Adults

The psychological well-being of young adults is a growing concern in the United States. Social networks, comprising relationships that provide various types of support, are crucial predictors of their psychological well-being. A network typology offers a pattern-centered approach to classify relational compositions into subgroups with similar patterns. Using longitudinal data from the UC Berkeley Social Networks Study (UCNets), this study identified a network typology for young adults' support networks and examined its relationship with psychological well-being across four functional support networks: confidant, advice-seeking, practical support, and companionship networks. Clustering analysis identified six support network types: family-focused, friends-focused, partner-friends, friends-family, partner-family, and peers-focused (friends and schoolmates) networks. Multilevel regression analyses indicated that family-focused networks were the most beneficial confidant and companionship network type for improving young adults' psychological well-being. In addition, relying on peers-focused networks for advice-seeking and practical support was associated with lower psychological well-being compared to family-focused networks. The findings provide important practical implications for developing health interventions.