Another year older, another year wiser? Emotion regulation strategy selection and flexibility across adulthood.

ABSTRACT: Several influential theories posit that improvements in emotion regulation contribute to enhanced emotional well-being in older adulthood. However, surprisingly little is known about whether there are age differences in emotion regulation strategy use. We addressed this question by testing whether older adults report using typically adaptive strategies more often and regulate more flexibly than relatively younger adults. In a two-part study, 136 married couples (N = 272) aged 23-85 years completed individual difference measures of cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression, and then nine daily reports of a broader range of emotion regulation strategies, now including situation selection, situation modification, and distraction. Older adults reported greater habitual use of suppressio

SUBMITTER: Eldesouky L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6002946 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature