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1.
Psychon Bull Rev ; 2024 Jun 14.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38874797

ABSTRACT

When a stimulus is paired with a response, a stimulus-response (SR) binding (or event file) is formed. Subsequent stimulus repetition retrieves the SR binding from memory, which facilitates (impedes) performance when the same (a different) response is required. We aimed to explore whether indirect retrieval of SR bindings by a newly learnt associated stimulus is possible. Participants first went through a learning task to acquire novel stimulus-stimulus associations. The same stimulus pairs were then presented in a prime-probe task to assess direct and indirect retrieval effects. Participants responded by classifying word color in prime and probe trials. Probe words were either identical to prime words (test for direct retrieval) or corresponded to the associated stimulus (test for indirect retrieval) or were unrelated words (baseline). Independently of word relation, response relation (repetition vs. change) across prime and probe trials was manipulated. In two highly powered preregistered studies (total N = 260) using different types of stimulus associations, we obtained evidence for direct retrieval due to identical word repetition in the probe. Crucially, evidence for indirect retrieval upon presentation of an associated probe word was absent. Controlling for memory of each stimulus-stimulus association did not alter the findings. Our results show that indirect retrieval through newly acquired associations does not occur at the level of SR bindings, at least not for recently acquired stimulus-stimulus associations. Our study illustrates the scope of binding principles and highlights boundary conditions for the stimulus properties that can elicit automatic response retrieval.

2.
J Pers Soc Psychol ; 2024 May 02.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38695793

ABSTRACT

We introduce the test difficulty concept from classical test theory to tackle the issue of low predictive power of implicit association tests (IATs). Following classical test theory, we argue that IATs of moderate difficulty (defined as mean IAT scores of zero) have more predictive power than IATs of extreme difficulties (defined as mean IAT scores deviating strongly from zero). Furthermore, we assume this relationship to be mediated by the true-score variance in IAT scores, with moderate difficulty resulting in more true-score variance. To test our hypotheses, we used nonexperimental (Studies 1 and 2) and experimental designs (Study 3). In Studies 1 and 2, we compared IATs of different test difficulties with regard to their ability to predict direct attitude measures, drawing on the Attitudes, Identities, and Individual Differences study. In Study 1, a subset of 95 attitude IATs (n = 127,259) was analyzed using multilevel structural equation models. As expected, IAT test difficulty strongly moderated the predictive power of IATs, and this effect was mediated by IAT true-score variance. In Study 2, we replicated the results with the same analyses but a different subset of 95 identity IATs (n = 43,745). In Study 3, we experimentally manipulated the IAT test difficulty. In total, three IATs (n = 480) were analyzed using multigroup structural equation models. Again, the IAT closer to moderate difficulty had more true-score variance and predictive power than the IATs of extreme difficulty. Accordingly, for correlational research, we recommend developing moderately difficult IATs to maximize IAT true-score variance and provide suggestions on how to achieve that. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

3.
Aging Ment Health ; : 1-11, 2024 May 28.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38804061

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: Prescriptive views of aging (PVoA) are normative age-based expectations about age-appropriate behavior for older adults, e.g. that they should stay fit/active (active aging norms) but also behave altruistically toward younger generations (altruistic disengagement norms). We aimed at examining age differences in endorsement of active aging and altruistic disengagement and investigated predictors of endorsement. METHOD: In the AGEISM Germany survey, a representative sample of N = 1,915 German participants was recruited, covering a wide age range (Mage=56.57 years, 16-96 years). Cross-sectional data was collected via computer-assisted telephone interviews. RESULTS: Active aging was more strongly endorsed than altruistic disengagement. Endorsement of both PVoA was higher in older age groups - even more pronounced for altruistic disengagement. Endorsement of both norms was positively associated with positive age stereotypes. Furthermore, active aging was predicted by age centrality whereas altruistic disengagement was predicted by negative age stereotypes. Age was still a robust predictor of PVoA even after entering additional predictors. CONCLUSION: Although associated, prescriptive age norms (i.e. beliefs how older people should behave) and descriptive age norms (i.e. beliefs about how older adults and the aging process are like) represent partly independent belief systems, highlighting the importance to assess & further investigate predictors and consequences of PVoA, which become more prevalent with age.

4.
Psychol Res ; 2024 May 28.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38806734

ABSTRACT

In basketball, an attacking player often plays a pass to one side while looking to the other side. This head fake provokes a conflict in the observing opponent, as the processing of the head orientation interferes with the processing of the pass direction. Accordingly, responses to passes with head fakes are slower and result in more errors than responses to passes without head fakes (head-fake effect). The head-fake effect and structurally similar interference effects (e.g., Stroop effect) are modulated by the frequency of conflicting trials. Previous studies mostly applied a block-wise manipulation of proportion congruency. However, in basketball (and also in other team sports), where different individual opponents can be encountered, it might be important to take the individual frequency (e.g., 20% vs. 80%) of these opponents into account. Therefore, the present study investigates the possibility to quickly (i.e., on a trial-by-trial basis) reconfigure the response behavior to different proportions of incongruent trials, which are contingent on different basketball players. Results point out that participants indeed adapted to the fake-frequency of different basketball players, which could be the result of strategic adaptation processes. Multi-level analyses, however, indicate that a substantial portion of the player-specific adaptation to fake frequencies is accounted by episodic retrieval processes, suggesting that item-specific proportion congruency effects can be explained in terms of stimulus-response binding and retrieval: The head orientation (e.g., to the right) of a current stimulus retrieves the last episode with the same head orientation including the response that was part of this last episode. Thus, from a theoretical perspective, an attacking player would provoke the strongest detrimental effect on an opponent if s/he repeats the same head movement but changes the direction of the pass. Whether it is at all possible to strategically apply this recommendation in practice needs still to be answered.

5.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38815114

ABSTRACT

There is an ongoing debate about the cognitive mechanisms behind human contingency learning (CL). Although, in some studies, episodic retrieval of previous responses fully explained the observed CL effects (C. G. Giesen et al., 2020; Schmidt et al., 2020), other findings suggest that global contingencies have an additional effect on behavior (Xu & Mordkoff, 2020). In a high-powered (N = 500), preregistered study, we investigated CL effects after controlling for episodic retrieval of distractor-target (S-S) and distractor-response (S-R) bindings. Retrieval explained a large part of the CL effect. However, we still found a reliable residual CL effect even after controlling for retrieval. Notably, the residual CL effect depended on contingency awareness: The residual CL effect only occurred for trials for which participants correctly detected the respective color-word contingency, whereas for trials without contingency awareness, there was no residual CL effect. Collectively, our findings suggest that human CL is driven by two independent sources: (a) episodic retrieval of S-S and S-R bindings and (b) propositional knowledge of the contingencies. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

6.
Aging Ment Health ; : 1-10, 2024 Apr 25.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38660984

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: Depression is a prevalent mental health condition that also often affects older adults. The PROACTIVE psychosocial intervention was developed to reduce depressive symptomatology among older adults within primary care settings in Brazil. An important psychological marker that affects individuals' aging experience relates to how old people feel. Known as subjective age, this marker has been shown to be a risk factor for experiencing greater depressive symptoms if individuals report feeling older than their (chronological) age. In this study, we perform secondary analyses of the PROACTIVE cluster-randomized controlled trial to examine the role of subjective age. METHOD: The sample included 715 Brazilian older adults (74% female, Mage 68.6, SD = 6.9, age range: 60-94 years) randomized to intervention (n = 360, 74% female, Mage 68.4, SD = 6.6, age range: 60-89 years) or control (n = 355, 74% female, Mage 68.9, SD = 7.2, age range: 60-94 years) arms. Here our primary outcome was depressive symptoms at the 8-month follow-up assessed with the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) as a continuous variable. Our previous analyses demonstrated improved recovery from depression at follow-up in the intervention compared with the control arm. RESULTS: Relevant main effects and interactions in regression models for PHQ-9 presented here found that those reporting older subjective age had worse depressive symptoms at follow-up but that they benefitted more from the intervention when initial levels of depression were high. For participants who reported younger subjective ages the intervention showed positive effects that were independent of initial levels of depression. CONCLUSION: Our findings emphasize the importance of investigating possible underlying mechanisms that can help clarify the impact of mental health interventions.

7.
Exp Psychol ; 2024 Jan 30.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38288913

ABSTRACT

A conditioned response to a stimulus can be transferred to an associated stimulus, as seen in sensory preconditioning. In this research paper, we aimed to explore this phenomenon using a stimulus-response contingency learning paradigm using voluntary actions as responses. We conducted two preregistered experiments that explored whether a learned response can be indirectly activated by a stimulus (S1) that was never directly paired with the response itself. Importantly, S1 was previously associated with another stimulus (S2) that was then directly and contingently paired with a response (S2-R contingency). In Experiment 1a, an indirect activation of acquired stimulus-response contingencies was present for audiovisual stimulus pairs wherein the stimulus association resembled a vocabulary learning setup. This result was replicated in Experiment 1b. Additionally, we found that the effect is moderated by having conscious awareness of the S1-S2 association and the S2-R contingency. By demonstrating indirect activation effects for voluntary actions, our findings show that principles of Pavlovian conditioning like sensory preconditioning also apply to contingency learning of stimulus-response relations for operant behavior.

8.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37934019

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: Preparing for old age is an adaptive behavior with positive consequences on well-being. This study examined; (a) the degree to which the importance associated with positive outcomes within specific domains of everyday functioning (e.g., social relationships, health) varies across ages and cultures; (b) the impact of importance on preparing for old age; and (c) whether the effects of importance were greater in later life. METHODS: Using data from adults aged 30-85 years in Germany (n = 623), Hong Kong (n = 317), and the United States (n = 313) collected over 5 years, we examined variations in importance ratings across age, cultures, and behavioral domains, and the extent to which age and importance predicted preparations. RESULTS: Importance ratings were found to vary with age, time of test, domains, and culture, reflecting the expected contextual effects. Importance also was a positive predictor of preparations, with the strength of prediction being somewhat greater in old age. DISCUSSION: The results provide evidence that the perceived importance of functioning within domains is affected by a number of contextual factors, including the domain of everyday function and culture. Given that importance also predicts preparations, such variation may help explain differences in preparations across contexts. In line with selective engagement theory, some support was also obtained for the prediction that older adults are more selective in engaging resources in support of preparations. Such selectivity can be viewed as an adaptive response to diminishing personal resources in later life.


Subject(s)
Aging , Interpersonal Relations , Aged , Humans , Germany , Hong Kong , United States , Adult , Middle Aged , Aged, 80 and over
9.
Curr Opin Psychol ; 55: 101747, 2024 Feb.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38035656

ABSTRACT

We give an overview of what age stereotypes (AS) are, how they are acquired and change across the lifespan, and how they shape development in old age. AS reflect complex beliefs and expectations that vary on the following dimensions: They differ in content and valence, depending on the life-domain to which they are applied (context), they refer to different age-groups (reference), to older people or to oneself as an old person (direction of relevance), and they either describe how older people are or prescribe how they should be (modality). AS are acquired early, and later taint beliefs about one's own aging (internalization). Once they are part of the self-concept, AS act as self-fulfilling prophecies that shape the actual aging process (stereotype embodiment).


Subject(s)
Aging , Stereotyping , Humans , Aged , Self Concept , Longevity
10.
J Exp Psychol Learn Mem Cogn ; 50(3): 362-382, 2024 Mar.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37747502

ABSTRACT

Stimulus-response binding and retrieval (SRBR) is a fundamental mechanism driving behavior automatization. In five experiments, we investigated the modulatory role of affective consequences (AC) on SRBR effects to test whether binding/retrieval can explain instrumental learning (i.e., the "law of effect"). SRBR effects were assessed in a sequential prime-probe design, with an orthogonal variation of response relation (response repetition vs. change) by distractor relation (word repetition vs. change). Binding/retrieval effects are measured by an interaction of the two factors, with distractor repetitions inducing a retrieval of the prime episode and a tendency to re-enact the previous response, which leads to facilitation in conditions where the response must be repeated, but leads to interference when the required response changes from prime to probe. Positive, neutral, or negative events signaling changes in points that were linked to monetary gains or losses were delivered after every trial to investigate whether AC modulate the binding/retrieval effect. Consistently across all five experiments (total N= 466), robust SRBR effects were obtained, but we did not find any evidence for an affective modulation of these binding/retrieval effects, indicating that these effects are automatic and independent of AC. In particular, Experiment 5 demonstrated a dissociation between instrumental learning via AC (reflected in higher frequencies of rewarded responses) and SRBR, which was not influenced by AC following a response. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).


Subject(s)
Attention , Cognition , Humans , Attention/physiology , Reaction Time
11.
Eur J Ageing ; 20(1): 43, 2023 Nov 16.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37971678

ABSTRACT

Age discrimination is pervasive in most societies and bears far-reaching consequences for individuals' psychological well-being. Despite that, studies that examine cross-cultural differences in age discrimination are still lacking. Likewise, whether the detrimental association between age discrimination and psychological well-being varies across contexts remains an open question. In this study, therefore, we examined cross-cultural differences in perceived experiences of age discrimination and their detrimental association with a specific indicator of psychological well-being, which is life satisfaction. The sample was drawn from the Ageing as Future study and comprised 1653 older adults (60-90 years) from the Czech Republic, Germany, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and the USA. Participants self-reported their experiences of age discrimination and their life satisfaction. Findings indicated that participants from Hong Kong and Taiwan reported experiences of perceived age discrimination more often than participants from the Czech Republic, Germany, and the USA. Furthermore, experiences of age discrimination were negatively associated with life satisfaction. Cultural context moderated this relation: We found a smaller detrimental association between perceived experiences of age discrimination and life satisfaction in Eastern cultures, that is, in contexts where such experiences were perceived to be more prevalent. These findings highlight the importance of examining age discrimination across cultures. Experiences of age discrimination are clearly undesirable in that they negatively affect psychological well-being. Our results indicate that a higher self-reported prevalence of perceived age discrimination in the samples studied weakens this negative association. We discuss these findings in terms of adaptation (versus sensitization) in response to discrimination.

12.
Innov Aging ; 7(8): igad092, 2023.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37810569

ABSTRACT

Background and Objectives: Longevity is a societal achievement. However, people might not wish to live long lives under all conditions. When deciding about their longevity desires, some individuals may focus on present-oriented, concrete aspects of their lives, like their current state of health, whereas others may weigh up more future-oriented, abstract aspects, such as how important it is to be healthy. We investigated what factors are associated with individuals' willingness to live with impairment. Research Design and Methods: Factors associated with willingness to live with impairment were examined in a sample of N = 790 German participants aged 39-90 years (Mage = 63.38, SD = 14.30, 51% female). To examine age-specific factors related to desired longevity under impairment conditions, chronological age was added as a moderator in the analyses. Results: Findings indicated that for middle-aged adults, fear of becoming a burden and higher importance of health were associated with lower willingness to live with impairment. For older adults, lower willingness to live with impairment was associated with higher levels of instrumental preparation for the end of life. Discussion and Implications: The obtained age differences can be understood as reflecting a shift in time perspective and personal experiences. Among middle-aged adults, willingness to live with impairment is more strongly influenced by distant events that pertain to the future (e.g., fear of becoming a burden). Older adults, however, place more importance on their current life situation (e.g., instrumental preparation), and their willingness to live with impairment seems to be more conditional on practical aspects in the present.

13.
Gerontology ; 69(12): 1437-1447, 2023.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37769642

ABSTRACT

We define aging as a characteristic deterioration in one (or more) observable attributes of an organism that typically occurs during later life. With this narrow functional definition, we gain the freedom to separate aging from other processes of age-related change (e.g., maturation, growth, illness, terminal decline). We introduce a structural model that distinguishes between (1) the phenomenon of aging, (2) the subjective experience of aging, (3) sources of aging, and (4) consequences of aging. A core focus of the model is on the role of buffering mechanisms of biological repair and personal adaptation that regulate the relations between sources of aging, aging proper, and its consequences. The quality and level of functioning of these buffering mechanisms also varies across the life span, which directly affects the sources of aging, resulting in either resilience against or accelerated aging, and thus can be considered to be a major source of the variation in aging processes among different individuals. External factors comprising attributes of the physical environment and sociocultural characteristics are considered as contexts in which aging occurs. These contextual factors are assumed to feed into the various components of the model. Our model provides an interdisciplinary account of human aging, its sources and consequences, and also its subjective experience, by integrating biological, psychological, lifestyle, and sociocultural factors, and by specifying their interrelations and interactions. The model provides a comprehensive understanding of individual human aging, its underlying processes, and modulating factors. It allows for the derivation of empirically testable hypotheses, and it helps practitioners to identify elements that lend themselves to targeted intervention efforts aimed at increasing the resilience of individuals against aging and buffering its negative consequences.


Subject(s)
Aging , Resilience, Psychological , Humans , Aging/psychology
14.
Psychol Aging ; 38(8): 854-881, 2023 Dec.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37347921

ABSTRACT

Older adults are faced with prescriptions to remain fit and socially engaged (active aging) or limit consumption of social resources (altruistic disengagement), and violations of these may result in backlash and marginalization. Despite such negative consequences that prescriptive views of aging (PVoA) may have for older adults, whether PVoA endorsement is modifiable is still to be examined. Thus, in our study, we investigated the malleability of PVoA endorsement. Further, we explored whether malleability of PVoA endorsement generalizes across specific age norms (active aging and altruistic disengagement), life domains (health and social), and targets (others and self). We conducted two preregistered experiments in which participants reflected on agreeing or disagreeing with PVoA. In Experiment 1, 536 adults (50-89 years) reflected on their personal agreement or disagreement with PVoA. In Experiment 2, 435 adults (50-87 years) reflected on agreement with PVoA in society. Reflecting on agreement changed endorsement of PVoA in both experiments: Participants who reflected on agreement reported higher endorsement of PVoA, whereas participants who reflected on disagreement reported lower endorsement. Our results indicated that the cognitive representation of PVoA is norm and domain specific: The endorsement effect did not transfer from active aging to altruistic disengagement (or vice versa) nor across health and social domains. Further, participants set the same prescriptions for their behavior as they set for others as shown by a transfer between endorsement of other- to self-related PVoA. Our findings attest to the complexity and specificity of PVoA and offer important insights for designing interventions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).


Subject(s)
Aging , Social Participation , Aged , Humans , Aging/psychology , Altruism , Middle Aged , Aged, 80 and over
15.
J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci ; 78(8): 1341-1348, 2023 08 02.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37061826

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: Negative age stereotypes have negative, assimilative effects on the subjective aging experience due to internalization processes, but sometimes positive contrast effects are reported as well, reflecting dissociation and downward comparisons. Our aim was thus to compare short-term and long-term consequences of age stereotypes on the subjective aging experience, to test the hypothesis that contrast effects are visible cross-sectionally, whereas internalization processes are observed when considering long-term changes. METHODS: We assessed age stereotypes and subjective age in a core sample of N = 459 participants (initial age range 30-80 years) from the Ageing as Future project across 3 consecutive measurement occasions spanning a longitudinal interval of 10 years. Short-term and long-term effects were estimated with latent growth models by assessing the effects of age stereotypes on the intercepts (cross-sectional) and on the slopes (longitudinal) of subjective age, respectively, while controlling for current self-views. RESULTS: Age stereotypes had opposite effects on subjective age depending on the time frame. A cross-sectional contrast effect was found, whereas longitudinal effects were assimilative in nature. DISCUSSION: Our findings support the time-dependent nature of the effects of age stereotypes on the subjective aging experience. Negative age stereotypes temporarily lead to a significantly younger subjective age, indicating dissociation from one's age group and downward comparison. In the long run, however, negative (positive) age stereotypes become internalized into the self-views of older people and are linked to a relatively older (younger) subjective age.


Subject(s)
Aging , Stereotyping , Humans , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Cross-Sectional Studies , Self Concept , Emotions
16.
J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci ; 78(8): 1330-1340, 2023 08 02.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-36864682

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: Past studies showed that intergenerational contact is beneficial in improving attitudes toward older people. To date, however, research on the benefits of contact with older adults focused on younger adults (intergenerational contact), overlooking the effects for older adults (contact with same-age peers). In this study, we investigated the association between contact with older adults and views of the self in old age in a domain-specific way among younger and older adults. METHODS: The sample (n = 2,356) comprised younger (39-55 years) and older (65-90 years) adults who participated in the aging as future study and were from China (Hong Kong and Taiwan), the Czech Republic, Germany, and the United States. We used moderated mediation models for data analysis. RESULTS: Contact with older adults was related to more positive views of the self in old age and this effect was mediated by more positive stereotypes of older people. These relations were stronger for older adults. Beneficial effects of contact with older adults emerged mostly in the domains of friends and leisure, but less in the family domain. DISCUSSION: Having interactions with other older adults may help favorably shape how younger adults and particularly older adults view their own aging, especially in relation to friends and leisure activities. From the perspective of older adults, having regular contacts with other older adults may increase the heterogeneity of exposure to different aging experiences, thus encouraging the formation of more differentiated stereotypes of older people and of their views of themselves in old age.


Subject(s)
Aging , Stereotyping , Humans , Aged , Attitude , Self Concept , China
17.
Front Psychol ; 14: 1091763, 2023.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-36777216

ABSTRACT

Endorsement of implicit age stereotypes was assessed with the propositional evaluation paradigm (PEP) in a high-powered, preregistered study, comprising samples of young (n = 89) and older (n = 125) adults. To investigate whether implicit age stereotypes shape the behavior via self-stereotyping ("embodiment"), we examined whether implicit endorsement of the belief of older (young) people being cautious (reckless) predicts older (young) individuals' spontaneous behavior in a speeded response time task. In both age groups, we found significant implicit endorsement effects of age stereotypical beliefs. However, implicit endorsement effects of the cautiousness-related age stereotypes were unrelated to our indicators of spontaneous cautious/reckless behavior in the speeded RT task (as assessed with the parameter a of a diffusion model analysis) for both age groups. The same pattern of results (endorsement of age stereotypic beliefs but no relation with behavioral indicators) was found for explicit measures of age stereotypes. Replicating previous findings, implicit and explicit measures of cautiousness-related age stereotypes were uncorrelated. In sum, our findings provide evidence for the implicit and explicit endorsement of cautiousness-related stereotypical beliefs about old and young people; individual differences in belief endorsement, however, did not predict differences in spontaneous cautiousness-related behavior in a speeded RT task.

18.
J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci ; 78(7): 1152-1162, 2023 06 26.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-36827176

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: Emotional aging research is dominated by the idea of age-related improvements that result from shifts in motivation. Socioemotional selectivity theory (SST) proposes that as individuals age, they increasingly favor emotion-related goals and savor positive but avoid negative emotions. Previous age-comparative studies on everyday emotional experience typically were descriptive or studied the processes underlying emotional experience in isolation. We aimed at a more holistic approach to test hypotheses derived from SST regarding age-related differences in general emotional dispositions (i.e., anchoring), emotional reactivity, and emotion regulation by using a computational approach. METHODS: We applied our Model of Intraindividual Variability in Affect (MIVA) to data on everyday emotional experiences in an age-diverse sample (N = 378, age range 14-86 years). Parameter estimations were carried out within a Bayesian framework. RESULTS: Our results provide partial support for predictions derived from SST. Unexpectedly, anchoring showed a negative age trend, indicating a more positive affect disposition in younger, not older adults. Reactions to pleasant events showed no age trend. Reactivity to unpleasant events was highest in midlife and lower for younger and older adults. Consistent with SST, affect elicited by pleasant events was regulated less strongly by older adults and affect elicited by unpleasant events more strongly. DISCUSSION: As our results provide only partial support for SST, we revisit the phenomena that are at its foundations and provide suggestions on how to refine the theory.


Subject(s)
Aging , Emotional Regulation , Humans , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Aging/psychology , Bayes Theorem , Emotions/physiology , Motivation
19.
Exp Aging Res ; 49(1): 41-57, 2023.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-35175906

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: In a series of three studies (N = 187), we investigated the correlation between implicit and explicit age stereotypes, both of which were assessed in a context-dependent way. METHODS: To assess implicit age stereotypes, we presented combinations of age category and specific context information as primes in a lexical decision task (LDT) with age stereotypic attributes as targets (e.g., "An old person is passing the crosswalk." - "slow"). To assess explicit age stereotypes, stereotypic traits were rated for their fit with person descriptions containing the same category and context information as the implicit measure. RESULTS: Category effects for the priming and rating tasks emerged within relevant contexts, however, we found no correlations between these two indicators, despite the fact that the same contexts were provided for explicit and implicit assessment. CONCLUSION: These findings indicate that implicit and explicit age stereotypes reflect independent belief systems that are activated under different operating conditions (automatic activation vs. controlled reasoning).


Subject(s)
Aging , Stereotyping , Humans , Problem Solving
20.
Int J Aging Hum Dev ; 97(3): 267-288, 2023 10.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-35791630

ABSTRACT

Exposure to expectations for active aging may be modulated by age and individual resources (socioeconomic status, social integration, and health) via multiple pathways. Using a cross-sectional, nationally representative sample of adults aged 17 to 94 (N = 2,007), we investigated the relations between age, individual resources, and perceived expectations for active aging (PEAA) in three domains (physical health, mental health, and social engagement). Across domains, young adults and individuals aged 70+ reported slightly lower PEAA than emerging adults did; no other age differences emerged. Multiple regression showed that a higher subjective socioeconomic status, better perceived general health, and partnership (in older adults) predicted higher PEAA (almost) across domains, whereas church attendance, employment status, and occupational prestige yielded domain- and age-specific effects, which were not always positive. We conclude that the effects of individual resources on PEAA are limited in general but vary depending on life domain and age.


Subject(s)
Motivation , Stereotyping , Humans , Aged , Cross-Sectional Studies , Aging/psychology
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