Measurement and Predictive Invariance of Social Support and Psychological Distress Among First- and Continuing-Generation College Students.

This article focuses on evaluating the measurement and predictive invariance of two social support instruments—the Interpersonal Support Evaluation List 12-item (ISEL-12) and the Inventory of Socially Supportive Behaviors (ISSB)—among first- and continuing-generation college students in relation to psychological distress. Using data from 1,573 students at a midsize Texas university, the study found that both measures reliably assess social support and predict psychological distress equivalently across these groups. While first-generation students reported slightly lower perceived availability of someone to talk to and potentially less frequent emotional support, the associations between social support and psychological distress were similar for both groups. These findings support the use of the ISEL-12 and ISSB in diverse college populations and highlight social support as a key factor in addressing psychological distress, particularly for first-generation students.