Perceived social support is assessed with 4 questions from the Multidemensional Scale of Perceived Social Support.

Participants are asked to indicate how much they agree or disagree with each of the following statements:

1. There is a special person who is around when I am in need.
2. There is a special person with whom I can share joys and sorrows.
3. I have a special person who is a real source of comfort to me.
4. There is a special person in my life who cares about my feelings.

Perceived social support is the mean of 4 items. The variable ranges from 1 to 5, with higher values indicating more social support.

Response choices for each item:

Note: This variable is calculated if 3 or more items are non-missing.