This study had three aims: (1) to identify stressful situations faced by Indian children and adolescents working on the streets; (2) to study their preference for social support when faced with stress; and (3) to identify gender differences in social support preferences. One hundred 8- to 18-year-olds, working as beggars, vendors, or ragpickers, or who were self-employed, comprised the sample. Observation and interviews were used to identify stressful situations related to the workplace, earnings, home, school, peers, and siblings. A Q-sort technique was used to collect social support preference information. The results indicated that a majority of the children preferred to be alone in most stressful situations, especially those related to the workplace, peers, and parental punishment. They commonly sought their parents' support when they needed money, faced sibling problems, or did household chores. Mothers' support was preferred to fathers', grandparents', and other relatives' support. More boys than girls preferred to be alone in stressful situations, and a larger percentage of girls sought their mothers' support in comparison to the boys. Children's preference for social support provides information on self-reliance, effective survival and coping strategies, the nature of family relationships, the quality of social interactions, and the stressors that street children and adolescents face in difficult circumstances. (KDFB)