Fewer Ups and downs: Daily stressors mediate age differences in negative affect

Susan Turk Charles, Gloria Luong, David M. Almeida, Carol Ryff, Maggie Sturm, Gayle Love

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

68 Scopus citations

Abstract

The current study examined age differences in daily stressors, positive events (uplifts), and their associations with emotional experience among healthy older women. Women (N = 101, 63-93 years old) reported their daily experiences across 1 week. Older age was related to fewer stressors and less frequent negative affect. However, the association between negative affect and age was no longer significant after accounting for the occurrence of daily stressors. Older age was not significantly related to positive affect, although positive uplifts were reported less frequently with age. Findings provide a contextual explanation for emotional experience in very late life, where reduced exposure to stressors partially explains age-related reductions in negative affect.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)279-286
Number of pages8
JournalJournals of Gerontology - Series B Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences
Volume65 B
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - May 2010

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Health(social science)
  • Sociology and Political Science
  • Life-span and Life-course Studies

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