Ruth Mckinley: The Exchange And Choice Theory

Ruth McKinley is seventy nine years old and is suffering from the end stages of breast cancer. Her son and his wife, Stanley and Marcia, graciously opened their home to Ruth allowing her to live with them while they care for her. Stanley and Marcia took out a second mortgage on their home in order to make it more adaptable for Ruth. Stanley lost his job several months ago, and Marcia recently had an accident which has caused her to be out of work. They are now three months behind on their mortgage payments. Stanley and Marcia also have a twenty five year old daughter, Bethany, who lives in the home. Bethany is currently in school working towards her bachelor’s in nursing and is also working two part time jobs. Bethany is currently contemplating dropping out of school in order to spend more time with her …show more content…
To better understand this issue I focused on the exchange and choice theory. The exchange and choice theory “share the common focus on the process whereby individual and collective actors seek and exchange resources and choices made in pursuit of those resources” ( ). Although Marcia is currently out of work she will be returning next week. Since Stanly has lost his job, Marcia has now transitioned into the main source of income and can now provide for her family. Stanley not being able to provide income has put some strain on the family, but he now has the time to be the main caregiver to his mom Ruth. Bethany is helping to provide income for the family as well as providing care for her grandmother, even though she feels she should be spending more time at home. Ruth may feel as though she is not contributing to the family; however, she is providing much needed emotional support. As I stated above, Bethany enjoys the time she spends with her