Analysis of Little Miss Sunshine
University of Southern California
Olive Hoover is a seven year old that is afforded an opportunity to compete in the Little Miss Sunshine pageant by chance. Little Miss Sunshine is the story of a family who, in the face of many physical, emotional, and social obstacles, band together to support the dreams of Olive. The following discussion is a theoretical analysis of Olive Hoover applying concepts from four theories, and a critical analysis of each theory.
The Hoover family is a blended lower-middle class family who resides in Albuquerque, New Mexico in a single family home. The matriarch of the family is Sheryl, whose occupation is the main source of income …show more content…
Finally, we examine Olive’s social development. Olive’s family uses positive reinforcement as a function of their support system. The use of positive reinforcement teaches behavior control, but also fosters self-awareness, self-confidence, and self-esteem. Social reinforcement is utilized by her family as they praise her for a job well done. Physical praise is also an effective communication tool. Olive is embraced by all members of her family prior to and after her performance in the pageant. Additionally, when she consoles her brother, she is hugged by her mother as reinforcement for good behavior. Lastly, Olive’s family provides a good source of behavior modeling for Olive that promotes resilience.
Application of Family Resilience
Resilience is the ability of an individual to recover from adversity and resume function using strengths as coping mechanisms, despite various traumatic events or difficulties (Zastrow and Kirst-Ashman, 2010). In today’s society, where adversity is common, having resilience is useful to gain hope and confidence, on an individual and family level. Two dimensions of resiliency include risk and protection. Risk increases vulnerability through traumatic or stressful situations, while protection involves various factors that act as barriers to the vulnerable individual or family. Olive’s journey to California is filled with traumatic events; her uncle’s suicide attempt, the breakdown of the vehicle, economic