Emotional Partnership in Late Life: Cultural and Gendered Limits of Socioemotional Selectivity Theory in Turkish Nursing Homes

Abstract

This phenomenological study examines emotional partnership experiences among older adults living in Turkish nursing homes, employing Socioemotional Selectivity Theory (SST) as a critical theoretical lens to evaluate its cross-cultural applicability. The term emotional partnership is used to capture a continuum of relational orientations-including companionship, emotional intimacy, and romantic interest-that extends beyond strictly marital or sexualised categories and reflects culturally mediated expressions of late-life intimacy in Turkish nursing homes. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 30 residents (14 women, 16 men; aged 65-85) across two nursing homes in Ankara. Data were analysed using Braun and Clarke's reflexive thematic analysis, generating five themes: (1) "I Don't Want to Repeat That Experience": past relationships shaping new beginnings, (2) "We've Already Come to Life's End": temporal awareness and the foreclosure of new partnerships, (3) "The Children Didn't Want It, So I Gave Up Too": intergenerational gatekeeping of late-life partnership, (4) "Talking Too Much with a Man Creates Rumours": cultural and institutional boundaries on cross-gender interaction, and (5) "Will I Serve Him?": gendered caregiving expectations shaping partnership avoidance. While the findings partly support the core mechanisms of SST, they also reveal significant cultural and gendered variations that call for theoretical refinement. We propose a culturally situated extension of SST that incorporates family gatekeeping, patriarchal gender norms, and institutional contexts. Drawing on Kandiyoti's concept of patriarchal bargaining, we further argue that older women's avoidance of partnership may represent an active negotiation of gendered expectations rather than passive compliance with social norms. Overall, the findings suggest that SST's individualistic assumptions require reconsideration when applied to collectivist and tradition-oriented contexts, where relational autonomy is shaped by family approval and broader cultural norms. By foregrounding these dynamics, the study contributes to cross-cultural gerontological scholarship on aging, intimacy, and gender.