The Gerontologist· 2021Q1
Socioemotional Selectivity Theory: The Role of Perceived Endings in Human Motivation
- 509citations
- Q1SCImago
- 2021year
Short summary
Socioemotional Selectivity Theory (SST) posits that awareness of life's endings, such as aging or illness, shifts motivation towards prioritizing emotionally meaningful goals over exploration.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Key points
- Awareness of life's endings motivates a shift in goals.
- Emotionally meaningful goals are prioritized over exploration when endings are perceived.
- SST research has informed understanding of preferences, social networks, and emotional experience.
- The positivity effect in cognitive processing is a related discovery.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
Socioemotional selectivity theory (SST) is a theory of life-span development grounded in the uniquely human ability to monitor time. SST maintains that the approach of endings-whether due to aging or other endings such as geographic relocations and severe illness-elicits motivational changes in which emotionally meaningful goals are prioritized over exploration. Research guided by SST has informed preferences, social networks, and emotional experience and led to the discovery of the positivity effect in cognitive processing. This article, based on my 2015 Robert W. Kleemeier Award Lecture, describes the development of SST and its related program of empirical research.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. The Gerontologist, 2021 · DOI ↗
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Field: Neuropsychology and Physiological Psychology
Neuropsychology and Physiological PsychologyPsychology