AGE AND COGNITIVE ABILITY AS PREDICTORS OF EMOTION REGULATION STRATEGY USE

Abstract

Abstract Emotion regulation (ER) is viewed as a cognitively demanding process and involves selecting and implementing specific strategies in support of one’s emotional goals. Older adults are theorized to maintain emotional wellbeing by selecting ER strategies that are consistent with their available resources, which may involve engaging more with lower-arousal stimuli and less with higher-arousal stimuli, especially when cognitive resources are limited. The aim of this study was to examine relationships between age, cognitive ability, and use of different types of ER strategies. Participants (N = 287) aged 25-85 (M = 54.33, SD = 17.19) completed assessments of cognitive ability from the NIH Toolbox Cognitive Battery. In a laboratory task, participants viewed a series of film clips eliciting low-arousal emotions (sadness, contentment) and high-arousal emotions (disgust, amusement) under instructions to regulate pro-hedonically using any available strategy. They reported their use of disengagement (e.g., distraction, suppression), engagement (e.g., perspective-taking, awareness), and positive-focus strategies (e.g., savoring, positive reappraisal). Results from multilevel models revealed that with low-arousal stimuli, age was associated with higher engagement and lower disengagement, regardless of fluid cognitive ability. With high-arousal stimuli, a fluid cognition X age interaction indicated that there was an age-related increase in engagement among individuals with higher fluid cognitive ability, but not lower fluid cognitive ability. Findings support the idea that older adults tend to engage with emotional stimuli, which may aid with processing and support emotional memory for future regulation attempts. Fluid cognitive ability may be an important resource supporting older adults’ engagement with high-arousal stimuli.