Far from eyes far from heart: family and friends social support between depressive symptoms and loneliness among university students

Purpose Attending university may entail moving away from home. Leaving the family household is a complex and important stage in the process to gain independence from family and develop stronger relationship with friends. The present study aimed to analyse the chain mediating role of social support from family and friends between depressive symptoms and loneliness among university students. Design/methodology/approach The survey data sample consisted of 443 Portuguese young adults (ranging from 18 to 25 years old). Participants completed the UCLA loneliness scales, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MPSS) and Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21). Data analysis was carried out using the SPSS programme and Hayes procedure was used to analyse the mediation effect. Findings The bootstrap analysis found that family as a source of social support mediated the relationship between depressive symptoms and loneliness. Similarly, depressive symptoms had a significant indirect effect on loneliness through the mediation of friends as a source of social support. Moreover, it was found that the relationship of family and friends social support mediated the association of the aforementioned variables. Originality/value This research advances our understanding of social support sources from family and friends among university students who live far away from their family household, providing suggestions for interventions tackling depressive symptoms and loneliness in a university setting.