Scale (ratio)

Demography

Social psychology

Cartography

Social support

Developmental psychology

Psychology

Geography

Political science

Normative

Population

Sociology

BMC Psychology

The objectives of the study were to generate normative data for the Oslo Social Support Scale (OSSS-3) for different age groups for men and women and to further investigate the factor structure in the general population.Nationally representative face-to face household surveys were conducted in Germany in 2008 (n = 2524).Normative data for the Oslo Social Support Scale were generated for men and women (52.3% female) and different age levels (mean age (SD) of 48.9 (18.3) years). Men had mean scores comparable to women (10.1 [SD = 2.3] vs. 10.2 [SD = 2.2]). The EFA resulted in a clear one-factor solution for the OSSS-3.The normative data provide a framework for the interpretation and comparisons of social support with other populations.

Social support in the general population: standardization of the Oslo social support scale (OSSS-3)