Introduction
Mrs. Minnette Paul is a mother, wife and caregiver and has been working in this field for over thirty years. She completed her high school education in the Caribbean and received two certifications from a community college in New York in child development. Mrs. Paul is very passionate about working with children, but is now considering retiring or starting up her own child-care business. In her spare time, Mrs. Paul browses the web, shop, and spend quality time at home with her husband. I met Mrs. Paul in New York while visiting family and friends. She and I were assisting with the children at a family event and both bonded while doing this. I have known her for over eleven years and she treats me like a daughter. I chose to interview …show more content…
Paul, we talked about the socioemotional selectivity theory and how she found it relatable to her life today. We discussed how socioemotional selectively theory is related to the social goals shifts a person makes to maximize emotional gain and positive feelings towards their loved ones (Whitbourne, 2014). Mrs. Paul stated that today she finds herself more into family than friends even though her family sometimes upset her. Additionally, she finds herself avoiding leisure time with friends, and not engaging completely with the environment. It is said that older adults’ motivational changes or goals are related to their emotional meaning (Lockenhoff & Carstensen, 2004). Hence, I would assume that by Mrs. Paul spending less time with friends and limiting engaging socially was because it was not as meaningful as it was spending quality time with her family, regardless of how upsetting they can be. Socioemotional selectivity theory also suggests that aging adults tend to look for rewards from interactions with others (Whitbourne, 2014). So, I presume that Mrs. Paul received an emotional reward from her family more than she received it from her friends. I think that the socioemotional selectivity theory makes sense because I believe as people age emotional bonds forming a meaning relationship is important for a healthy aging process. Socioemotional selectivity theory minimizes emotional risks and hone in on positive emotions (Whitbourne,
Mrs. Minnette Paul is a mother, wife and caregiver and has been working in this field for over thirty years. She completed her high school education in the Caribbean and received two certifications from a community college in New York in child development. Mrs. Paul is very passionate about working with children, but is now considering retiring or starting up her own child-care business. In her spare time, Mrs. Paul browses the web, shop, and spend quality time at home with her husband. I met Mrs. Paul in New York while visiting family and friends. She and I were assisting with the children at a family event and both bonded while doing this. I have known her for over eleven years and she treats me like a daughter. I chose to interview …show more content…
Paul, we talked about the socioemotional selectivity theory and how she found it relatable to her life today. We discussed how socioemotional selectively theory is related to the social goals shifts a person makes to maximize emotional gain and positive feelings towards their loved ones (Whitbourne, 2014). Mrs. Paul stated that today she finds herself more into family than friends even though her family sometimes upset her. Additionally, she finds herself avoiding leisure time with friends, and not engaging completely with the environment. It is said that older adults’ motivational changes or goals are related to their emotional meaning (Lockenhoff & Carstensen, 2004). Hence, I would assume that by Mrs. Paul spending less time with friends and limiting engaging socially was because it was not as meaningful as it was spending quality time with her family, regardless of how upsetting they can be. Socioemotional selectivity theory also suggests that aging adults tend to look for rewards from interactions with others (Whitbourne, 2014). So, I presume that Mrs. Paul received an emotional reward from her family more than she received it from her friends. I think that the socioemotional selectivity theory makes sense because I believe as people age emotional bonds forming a meaning relationship is important for a healthy aging process. Socioemotional selectivity theory minimizes emotional risks and hone in on positive emotions (Whitbourne,