THE IMAGE OF SIGNIFICANT OTHER AS A FACTOR OF ELDERLY PEOPLE'S LIFE SATISFACTION

Purpose. The article looks at the phenomenon of significant Other as an element of self-consciousness and its correlation with life satisfaction of elderly people. The author of the article draws special attention to the interrelation of life satisfaction and the Image of significant Other for elderly people which is of current interest in connection with the importance of developing co-existence relationships with the Others. Research Methods: theoretical study method; techniques of data processing, Fisher’s ratio test, Spearman rank correlation analysis. Results. Elderly people’s life satisfaction is connected with the Image of significant Other: for satisfied with their life elderly people – with self-respect, for dissatisfied – with self-confidence. Self-respect and self-confidence of the significant Other increases elderly people’s life satisfaction. Moreover, the vision of values of the Other (communication values, self-actualization, business) is a crucial parameter linked to elderly people’s life satisfaction. Results Application. The study findings can be used to develop courses on psychology of personality, developmental psychology, gerontopsychology, counseling and psychocorrection, the findings can be also useful for social service centers providing aid for the elderly.