Social Relationships and Their Influence on Personal Happiness and Wellbeing - Assignment Example

Social relationships and their influence on personal happiness and wellbeing Name Institution Date Introduction Personal wellbeing and happiness is based on people’s state of mind including their emotional and physical state. Levett (2013, p.48) states that, people relate their well-being to the emotional and physical states that their careers and workplace impact on them. The well-being of people is based on independent assessment of themselves. People’s well-being and happiness are different such that, happiness is a positive feeling that most people desire and is independently expressed by people. However, the personal assessment of well-being and personal happiness is not felt by everybody and some people feel like never experiencing it. There are aspects in the workplace environment which determine individual’s happiness and an organization’s staff will express it through their ability to show interest in others and to get involved, patience in dealing with people and tasks, readiness to listen and sense of fun. People who are happy end to have a better social life and healthier relationships. According to Levett (2013, p.48), work satisfaction, staff working hours, healthy lifestyles and social participation of people influences how people feel about their wellbeing and happiness. This is also evident in the social relationships of old people in nursing home accommodation and those still in their own homes. This displays the aspect of adult development as studied in psychology. According to Ginn & Fast (2003), when individuals retire, others prefer staying in their homes where they can be taken care of by younger relatives or join their age group in the nursing faculties for old people. Old people create relationships and maintain them through volunteering work and relations with families. The feeling of happiness and well-being vary between these two groups of people. This paper analyses these differences in terms of relationships and feelings of happiness and well-being of the retired lot through analysis of themes in literature provided by previous researchers. The themes of accomplishment, age focus and personal health and ability are discussed. Accomplishment in working, living and growing with others Old people derive happiness and feeling of wellbeing from their accomplishment. Others derive the accomplishment from previous works before they retired while others find happiness in the abilities to socialize and work at an older age (Seligman, 2002). Individuals in the nursing home accommodations are assured of growing with others within or almost same age group. Those staying at their homes might be taken care of by their younger family members, however, some stay lonely lives which they don’t feel fulfilled. Participation in leisure activities Older people participation in leisure activities vary with the place they live, that is, those at their own homes and those at the nursing sing care facilities. According to Timonen et al (2007), older people in the nursing accommodation facilities participate in leisure activities such as visiting and being visited by their families and friends. Those old people staying alone are however likely to create and maintain relationships through voluntary attendance of volunteer association meetings and religious services. Myers (2002) notes that, individual leisure is common among old people stay alone in their homes and have more time. They watch television, read or listen to radio in solitary. Volunteering Volunteering among the old retired individuals has been established to give them a feeling of happiness and wellbeing. However, participation among nursing home accommodate individuals is less compared to those living at their homes. This is because, nursing accommodations have specific programs for the old people while those at homes have a lot of time and to make it active, will tend to participate in more volunteering work. Disabled old people participate less on volunteering activities and social activities. Individual ability and good health status Another aspect of happiness and well-being among old people is feeling that they are healthy and feeling that they are able to perform work although of lower quality. People staying at their homes feel fulfilled through activities like romantic engagements and family roles as grandparents or great grandparents. Such activities allow old people an active aging process with fulfillment. Disability or physical incapability It is also evident that people’s physical state determines how much they interact with others and develop their relations with others. Older people with forms of physical disabilities are mainly accommodated in the nursing home facilities for older people tend to where they are accessed to constant care than their homes. According to Hartley & University of Wyoming (2007, p.52), people with certain disabilities find it challenging to integrate socially and perform roles due to lack of other people who have same ideas on aging. On the other hand, people with no physical disability would prefer being at their homes after retirement. The disabled aged people join the nursing homes for purposes like being cooked for, clothed and activities they cannot perform due to their disability. Harrison and Kahn (2004, p.116) state that women with disabilities are likely to avoid interacting with others and to develop relationships with other people. This is because they think of themselves as lesser people than others. They would be happy to be around positive minded people who can make them feel positive of themselves. Attachment to family Older people with attachments to their families including children, parents, and friends derive their happiness and well-being from having such people around them and taking care of them. This kind of old people would prefer staying a home rather than joining a nursing accommodation facility when they retire. According to Doherty and Feeney (2004, p.470), attachment to family involves the parents’ relationship with their adult children that although they are not so much involved in their daily routines, unlike when they were young, parents are attached to their relationships with their children. Adult children maintain the relationships by providing care to the ageing parents and parents also maintain that relation by preferring to be home with family rather than in nursing accommodation. This is where they derive happiness and sense of well-being. People with no families would rather be in nursing home accommodations to have the feeling of family around them as they age. This is what brings them happiness and fulfillment. Leonard & Burns (2006, p.34) state that, people ageing around their families or people they view as family experience happiness and good health as they age. Non-focused aging Research has it that when older people who do not focus on their ageing but get destruction from other activities of their lives seem happier and healthier. People might know their age and how they feel but don’t make it an issue. Romantic engagements are one of the activities that can get older people planning and acknowledging their lives instead of focusing on their age. Personal perceptions and thoughts about their age are likely to interfere with their happiness and wellbeing (Sprecher, 2010, p.630). Romantic engagements Old people are also involved in other relationships other than on friendly basis or with siblings, parents and children. People in this category derive their happiness and state of well-being from being closer to their relations. It is common for old people staying in their homes after retirement. Doherty and Feeney (2004, p.469) state that this varies in terms of selections based on social and emotional feeling and caregiving. Older people also have the feeling of having a clos care giver based relationships to share in distress and happiness. This brings the feeling of well-being. In such a case, older people would prefer staying at their homes with their partners unlike those under the nursing care accommodations where they have more friends to interact with. Such adults will take nursing accommodation as separation protest and insecurity based for confidence which they derive from relationships they have. Old people in the nursing accommodation facilities interact with more people meet new friends each day and are involved in so many activities within the facilities that other engagements might become the least source of their happiness and well-being (Sprecher, 2010, p.642). Personal affiliation The happiness and well-being of older people tend to be influenced by how they perceive themselves. Harrison and Kahn (2004, p.116) states that old people are less involved in social situations when they perceive themselves as negative stereotypes to others which indicate negative views on age. In such cases, both old people living in their homes and those in nursing home accommodations will derive their happiness and well-being on being supported and confirmation of their thoughts. These old people will want to associate with other people who support their feelings. Social frustrations are likely to creep in in incidences like this. This will in turn destroy the happiness and wellbeing of such people (Leonard & Burns, 2006, p.28). Conclusion Happiness and the wellbeing of people contribute to their health status and abilities at an old age. When people retire from work, they make different decisions on where they stay as they grow old. Staying home and being accommodated in nursing homes are among such options. However, the feeling of wellbeing and happiness vary in each situation. Ageing might be accompanied by social frustrations and age rejection, but on the other side, might also be made up of individual ability and health, growth and good living together with others and less focus on the age factor. References Harrisonan, T. & Kahn, D.L. (2004). Perceived age, social integration, and disability: A case study of aging women. Journal of Loss and Trauma. Sprecher, S. (2010). The influence of social networks on romantic relationships: Through the lens of the social network. Journal for international association for relationship research (IARR) Leonard, R & Burns, A. (2006). Turning points in the lives of midlife and older women: Five- year follow-up. The Australian Psychological society limited Doherty, N. A. & Feeney, J. A. (2004).The composition of attachment networks throughout the adult years. IARR Ginn, J. & Fast, J. (2003).Employment and Social Integration in Midlife. Commonwealth of Australia Levett, C. (2013).Wellbeing and happiness – worth striving for. ANF Myers, D.G. (2002). The Pursuit of Happiness. William Morrow and Company: New York. Seligman, M. (2002). Authentic Happiness. Random House: Sydney. Timonen, V., Kamiya, Y. & Maty, S. (2007). 4 Social Engagement Of Older People.The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA) Hartley, S. L., & University of Wyoming. (2007). Stressful social interactions, coping, and depression among adults with mild intellectual disability. Laramie, Wyo: University of Wyoming. Read More

Individuals in the nursing home accommodations are assured of growing with others within or almost same age group. Those staying at their homes might be taken care of by their younger family members, however, some stay lonely lives which they don’t feel fulfilled. Participation in leisure activities Older people participation in leisure activities vary with the place they live, that is, those at their own homes and those at the nursing sing care facilities. According to Timonen et al (2007), older people in the nursing accommodation facilities participate in leisure activities such as visiting and being visited by their families and friends.

Those old people staying alone are however likely to create and maintain relationships through voluntary attendance of volunteer association meetings and religious services. Myers (2002) notes that, individual leisure is common among old people stay alone in their homes and have more time. They watch television, read or listen to radio in solitary. Volunteering Volunteering among the old retired individuals has been established to give them a feeling of happiness and wellbeing. However, participation among nursing home accommodate individuals is less compared to those living at their homes.

This is because, nursing accommodations have specific programs for the old people while those at homes have a lot of time and to make it active, will tend to participate in more volunteering work. Disabled old people participate less on volunteering activities and social activities. Individual ability and good health status Another aspect of happiness and well-being among old people is feeling that they are healthy and feeling that they are able to perform work although of lower quality. People staying at their homes feel fulfilled through activities like romantic engagements and family roles as grandparents or great grandparents.

Such activities allow old people an active aging process with fulfillment. Disability or physical incapability It is also evident that people’s physical state determines how much they interact with others and develop their relations with others. Older people with forms of physical disabilities are mainly accommodated in the nursing home facilities for older people tend to where they are accessed to constant care than their homes. According to Hartley & University of Wyoming (2007, p.52), people with certain disabilities find it challenging to integrate socially and perform roles due to lack of other people who have same ideas on aging.

On the other hand, people with no physical disability would prefer being at their homes after retirement. The disabled aged people join the nursing homes for purposes like being cooked for, clothed and activities they cannot perform due to their disability. Harrison and Kahn (2004, p.116) state that women with disabilities are likely to avoid interacting with others and to develop relationships with other people. This is because they think of themselves as lesser people than others. They would be happy to be around positive minded people who can make them feel positive of themselves.

Attachment to family Older people with attachments to their families including children, parents, and friends derive their happiness and well-being from having such people around them and taking care of them. This kind of old people would prefer staying a home rather than joining a nursing accommodation facility when they retire. According to Doherty and Feeney (2004, p.470), attachment to family involves the parents’ relationship with their adult children that although they are not so much involved in their daily routines, unlike when they were young, parents are attached to their relationships with their children.

Adult children maintain the relationships by providing care to the ageing parents and parents also maintain that relation by preferring to be home with family rather than in nursing accommodation. This is where they derive happiness and sense of well-being.

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