Social Provisions in Adolescents’ Relationships With Parents, Best Friends, and Teachers: Validation of the Network of Relationships Inventory–Social Provisions Version
Abstract
Adolescents’ relationship quality plays a central role in socioemotional development. The Network of Relationships Inventory–Social Provisions Version (NRI-SPV) is widely used to assess relationship quality. However, evidence regarding its psychometric properties across different relationship types remains limited. This study examined the factor structure, internal consistency, construct validity, and convergent validity of the NRI-SPV in relationships with mothers, fathers, best friends, and teachers. A total of 714 participants (53.2% girls), aged 11 to 15 years ( M = 13.08, SD = 1.30), completed the inventory. Confirmatory factor analyses supported a nine-factor first-order structure, comprising seven positive provisions (reliable alliance, admiration, affection, companionship, instrumental help, intimacy, and nurturance) and two negative provisions (conflict and punishment), with good fit across relationship types (χ²/ df = 1.99–2.56, CFI = .92–.97, TLI = .90–.96, RMSEA = 0.04–0.06, SRMR = .04–.06). In contrast, a second-order model with two higher-order factors (social support and negative interactions) showed poorer fit (χ²/ df = 2.78–3.98, CFI = .87–.92, TLI = .85–.91, RMSEA = .06–.07, SRMR = .10–.16). Internal consistency was acceptable to strong, and all items loaded significantly on their intended factors. Convergent validity was demonstrated through robust associations with attachment security to mothers and fathers, indicating that the NRI-SPV effectively captures relational qualities aligned with established attachment constructs.