抄録
This paper reports a study that investigated perceived sources of support. To gather empirical evidence, a sample survey of women in four study areas of Canberra was conducted in 1986-87. Three hundred and ninety-four women who were under 55 years of age' and who were married or in a de fact relationship were interviewed. They responded to' four hypothetical difficult situations by identifying the sources from which they would seek support. Analysis of the data has revealed the following; (1)In a short-term situation (i.e., 'one-hour wait for a delivery') neighbours were very likely to be chosen as the key source of aid. However, few of Canberra's residents regarded neighbours, friends or workmates as providers of support in other situations. This is explained by the fact that the residents of the city consisted mainly of middle class people, and because they were generally rich or were dual-income families, the residents tended to cope with difficult situations by using purchased services. This made it difficult for them to expect help from neighbours, friends or workmates.(2)In long-term situation (i.e., 'two-weeks appendix operation' and 'three-months broken legs') relatives were thought of as being the most helpful, even when those relatives did not reside in Canberra. Residents were able to turn to their distant relatives for assistance, because people have strong bonds with relatives and the relation-ships are permanent.(3)Canberra has been developed since the 1960's on a full scale, and many people have migrated to the city since then. Such people were unlikely to have their relatives within the city, and as a result it was more difficult in Canberra to expect help from their relatives than in Detroit. However, at the time of this study many of such migrants had lived there for a long period and had gradually formed kinship relation-ships within the city. Thus, far more respondents in this survey reported their rela-tives as helpful than did those of nearly ten years ago.
