Although researchers strive to optimize support exchanges, support providers' experiences have largely been overlooked. To identify optimal support from the perspective of the support provider, the current research compared support providers' perceptions of touch and verbal support provision. In Experiment 1, participants were less stressed when they imagined their spouses requesting touch support (versus verbal support). This effect was explained by support providers' perceptions that touch support is less difficult and less likely to produce unintended negative consequences than verbal support and their greater self-efficacy to provide touch support. In Experiment 2, participants who imagined providing touch support (versus verbal or no support) in response to their partner's request anticipated less stress and greater relationship quality while providing support. Greater anticipated security and perceptions that touch support is less difficult and less likely to produce negative consequences explained these effects. Experiment 3 compared requests for touch support, general verbal support, and specific verbal support to test whether the benefits of touch support are explained by specificity. Participants viewed touch support as less difficult to provide and felt particularly special and secure when imagining providing touch support, which indirectly contributed to greater motivation to provide support, less anticipated stress, and greater anticipated relationship quality. Despite support provision deficits among insecurely attached participants, findings were consistent across attachment orientation. This research highlights support providers' experiences and adds to the literature demonstrating benefits of interpersonal touch.

尽管研究人员努力优化支持交流，但支持提供者的经验在很大程度上被忽视了。为了从支持提供者的角度确定最佳支持，当前的研究比较了支持提供者对接触和口头支持提供的看法。在实验 1 中，当参与者想象他们的配偶请求触摸支持（而不是口头支持）时，他们的压力较小。这种影响是由支持提供者的看法解释的，即与口头支持相比，接触支持更容易，也不太可能产生意外的负面后果，而且他们提供接触支持的自我效能更高。在实验 2 中，参与者想象提供触摸支持（相对于口头或不支持）以回应他们的伴侣的“ s 请求预期在提供支持的同时减少压力和提高关系质量。更大的预期安全性和触摸支持不太困难且不太可能产生负面后果的看法解释了这些影响。实验 3 比较了对触摸支持、一般口头支持和特定口头支持的请求，以测试触摸支持的好处是否可以通过特异性来解释。参与者认为提供接触支持不那么困难，并且在想象提供接触支持时感到特别特别和安全，这间接有助于提供支持的更大动力、更少的预期压力和更高的预期关系质量。尽管不安全依恋的参与者提供支持不足，但在依恋方向上的发现是一致的。