defined social support as an informal social network that provides individuals
with expressions of emotional concern or empathy, practical assistance, informational support
or appraisal (i.e. various types of social support). Workplace social support focuses on
collaborative problem solving and sharing information, reappraising situations and obtaining
advice from a variety of personnel such as colleagues, supervisors and managers (i.e. sources
of social support). Johnson and Hall (1988) included a dimension of social support in
Karasek’s (1979) Job Demand-Control model of occupational stress