Role of Hope and Perceived Social Support in Predicting Posttraumatic Growth among Half- Widows in Kashmir

Purpose:  The study investigates the role of hope and perceived social support in predicting posttraumatic growth among half-widows in Kashmir. Method: A correlational design was applied. The sample consists of 150 half widows with age ranging between (35-65) yrs, taken from Srinagar, Kupwara and Kulgam districts in Kashmir. Purposive sampling was the technique used for collection of data. Tools used: The Posttraumatic growth inventory developed by Tedeschi and Calhoun in 1996 is a 21-item, 6-point scale self-report measure. The summation of all 21 items yielded a total growth score which can range from 0 to 105. Higher scores were indicative of greater growth. In the present study, internal consistency (Cronbach’s α) of the total score was .96 and item-total correlations ranged from .59 to .82. The Trait Hope Scale (Snyder et al., 1991), comprising the 4-item Agency subscale and the 4-item Pathways subscale. Items are scored on an 8-point Likert scale, anchors ranging from ‘1 = Definitely False’ to ‘8 = Definitely True’. Both subscales have adequate internal reliability, with Cronbach’s alphas ranging from .70 to .84 for the Agency subscale, and from .63 to .86 for the Pathways subscale (Snyder et al., 1991). Perceived Social Support was measured using the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS). The MSPSS was developed by Zimet et al. (1988). The scale is a 12-item self-report measure for subjective assessment of experienced social support from three sources: Family, Friends, and Significant Other. Each item is rated on a 7-point Likert-type scale ranging from “strongly disagree” to “strongly agree”. The total score ranges from 12 to 84 for the entire 12-item questionnaire and from 4 to 28 for each of the three subscales. For these three subscales higher scores indicate greater perceived social support. In the current study reliability coefficient of the scale is 0.89.