Psychology and Aging最新文献

{"title":"Valence does not affect recognition of verbal stimuli for older adults: Implications for the age-related positivity effect.","authors":"Dominic Guitard, Ian Neath, Aimée M Surprenant","doi":"10.1037/pag0001017","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1037/pag0001017","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Research on the effect of valence on memory in aging presents a clear contradiction. The age-related positivity effect is an interaction between age and valence: Relative to younger adults, older adults preferentially attend to and remember positive over negative information. The contradiction arises because recent studies with younger adults have shown that when stimuli are more carefully equated, valence exerts no influence on memory for words. The present studies addressed this inconsistency using stimuli that are more fully equated. In the first three experiments, older adults aged between 65 and 80 completed recognition tests of positive, negative, and neutral words that also varied in concreteness. Recognition was chosen because it allows sensitivity (the ability to distinguish studied from new words) to be separated from response bias (a general tendency to respond \"old\" or \"new\"). The results consistently showed better memory for concrete than abstract words, replicating robust concreteness effects but no effect of valence on sensitivity. In the fourth experiment, both younger (age 18-25) and older (age 65-79) adults completed recognition tests of positive and negative words that all were low arousal. Once again, there was no evidence that valence affected memory for either age group. In addition, a cross-paper analysis directly comparing the older adult data from Experiment 1 of the present study with younger adult data from a previous publication confirmed the absence of an age-by-valence interaction. These findings replicate the null effects of valence in younger adults and older adults and constrain the scope of the age-related positivity effect, suggesting it may reflect response tendencies rather than differences in memory accuracy. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).</p>","PeriodicalId":48426,"journal":{"name":"Psychology and Aging","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148764878","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Understanding nomophobia in older adults: The role of function preferences, attitudes toward aging, and mental health.","authors":"Yiting Liu, Siyue Li, Shiyu Han, Xiaoting Liu","doi":"10.1037/pag0001020","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1037/pag0001020","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Nomophobia, the fear of being without mobile phones, has emerged as a problem among older adults with the growing popularity of smartphones. This study aims to examine how older adults' nomophobia is associated with their use frequency of different functions on smartphones, as well as their attitudes toward aging. A cross-sectional questionnaire survey (<i>N</i> = 315) was conducted in mainland China. Our findings revealed that older adults' nomophobia was positively associated with their use of instrumental, social, information, and production functions on smartphones, yet negatively associated with their mental health. In addition, older adults' attitudes toward aging, along with frequent use of social functions, were found to indirectly relate to their nomophobia through the mediation of their mental health. The findings revealed the complexity between older adults' smartphone dependency and mental health, highlighting the roles of their daily smartphone use behavior and attitudes toward aging. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).</p>","PeriodicalId":48426,"journal":{"name":"Psychology and Aging","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148765123","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The impact of physiological arousal on negative and neutral episodic memories in young and middle-aged adults.","authors":"Seham S Kafafi, Xinran Niu, Mia F Utayde, Kristin E G Sanders, Tony J Cunningham, Elizabeth A Kensinger, Jessica D Payne","doi":"10.1037/pag0001018","DOIUrl":"10.1037/pag0001018","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The relationship between physiological arousal and emotional memory enhancement is well established, but how this relationship changes with age remains unclear, especially in understudied middle-aged adults. The present study investigated the impact of physiological arousal on memory for emotional and neutral information across young adulthood and middle age. In this experiment, healthy young (ages 18-35; <i>n</i> = 55) and middle-aged (ages 36-59; <i>n</i> = 41) adults encoded scenes containing negative or neutral objects superimposed on neutral backgrounds, while their physiological arousal was recorded. During the memory test, participants indicated whether objects and backgrounds were same, similar, or new compared to the images they viewed during encoding. Memory for negative versus neutral objects (negative-neutral objects, or <i>negative memory difference</i>) was assessed. We found that heart rate deceleration (HRD) was associated with enhanced negative memory difference, while skin conductance response (SCR) amplitude was linked to a reduced negative memory difference. We also calculated <i>memory trade-off</i> scores to examine memory for central objects relative to their paired backgrounds, separately for scenes with negative (<i>negative memory trade-off</i>) and neutral central objects (<i>neutral memory trade-off</i>). Steeper HRD was linked to an increased negative memory trade-off, while higher SCR amplitude was associated with a decrease in the neutral trade-off effect. Parasympathetically driven HRD may be a more robust predictor of arousal-related memory enhancement than sympathetically driven SCR, especially in middle-aged adults. These findings highlight the importance of considering early age-related changes in autonomic function when examining changes in memory. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).</p>","PeriodicalId":48426,"journal":{"name":"Psychology and Aging","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148765598","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Age differences in incidental learning of emotional information.","authors":"Meital Friedman-Oskar, Hadas Okon-Singer, Tal Makovski","doi":"10.1037/pag0001015","DOIUrl":"10.1037/pag0001015","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Previous research has consistently shown an age-related positivity effect, in which older adults show relatively less negativity and/or relatively greater positivity in memory compared with younger adults. This study examined age-related differences in incidental learning of emotional stimuli, specifically examining how emotional valence influences memory within the framework of the visual statistical learning task. Participants across two age groups (young and older adults) viewed streams of object images with varying emotional valences (negative, positive, neutral) organized into triplets, unaware of their underlying structure. Subsequently, participants completed both a recognition test, assessing their ability to identify previously encountered triplets, and a free recall task. Results revealed no significant differences in overall visual statistical learning performance between age groups, indicating that the ability to extract statistical regularities remains stable across the lifespan. Interestingly, the pattern differed across tasks: In visual statistical learning, both age groups showed a robust advantage for negative over neutral triplets and no benefit for positive stimuli, whereas in free recall, older adults preferentially remembered positive images. This suggests that age-related positivity effects, which reliably emerge in free recall, do not necessarily generalize to prediction-based statistical learning and that negative emotion remains particularly effective in supporting the incidental extraction of regularities across the lifespan. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).</p>","PeriodicalId":48426,"journal":{"name":"Psychology and Aging","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148708151","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A continuous-time approach to short-term activity-cognition dynamics.","authors":"Minxia Luo, Charles C Driver, Daisy Zavala, Stacey B Scott, Christina Röcke","doi":"10.1037/pag0001012","DOIUrl":"10.1037/pag0001012","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Prior research suggests that naturally occurring leisure activities may exert short-term, time-lagged benefits on cognition over hours in middle- and older aged adults. We extended this work by examining short-term activity-cognition dynamics in two ambulatory assessment studies of U.S. adults spanning diverse demographic backgrounds, using a continuous-time modeling framework. Both studies involved repeated smartphone-based assessments of leisure activities (cognitive [Study 1 only], social, physical, and passive) and cognitive performance (processing speed and spatial working memory) over 2 weeks. Study 1 included 288 older adults (<i>n</i>_observations = 16,057, <i>M</i>_age = 77.08, 58% non-White). Hierarchical Bayesian continuous-time dynamic models indicated that, compared with intervals without cognitive, social, or passive activities, intervals with these activities showed beneficial within-person cross-effects on subsequent processing speed and working memory over hours. In contrast, activities and cognition showed negative within-person correlated random fluctuations, reflecting faster timescale co-occurring relations in opposite directions. At the between-person level, more frequent engagement in cognitive, social, and physical activities was associated with better cognition, whereas greater engagement in passive activities was associated with poorer cognition. Study 2 included 224 young and middle-aged adults (<i>n</i>_observations = 12,928, <i>M</i>_age = 44.67, 92% non-White). Replicating the older adult findings, moments dominated by passive activities showed beneficial within-person cross-effects on subsequent processing speed, alongside negatively correlated random fluctuations. In contrast, between-person associations indicated that greater engagement in passive activities was related to better working memory. Overall, these findings demonstrate short-term activity-cognition cross-effects while underscoring their complexity, as associations may differ across timescales and life stages. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).</p>","PeriodicalId":48426,"journal":{"name":"Psychology and Aging","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13437030/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148664566","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Celebrate or derogate? Reactions to older adults who feel young at heart.","authors":"Amy N Gourley, Alison L Chasteen","doi":"10.1037/pag0000994","DOIUrl":"10.1037/pag0000994","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>A younger subjective age is often associated with positive health and well-being outcomes among adults over the age of 65. However, it is possible that those who attempt to look or act younger than their chronological age may face backlash, given that this behavior is in violation of prescriptive stereotypes that serve to maintain hierarchical age group boundaries and mitigate threats to younger people's social and economic resources. The degree to which younger and middle-aged adults perceive violations of prescriptive age stereotypes (i.e., that older adults should act their age) may predict negative evaluations of older adult targets who feel \"younger than their years.\" Across two studies, we examined younger and middle-aged adults' attitudes and evaluations regarding older adult targets who varied by gender and felt age. Perceptions of older targets' counterstereotypical behavior and demeanor mediated the relationship between older targets' younger felt age and participants' ratings of targets' warmth, competence, overall liking, and interaction intentions. Specifically, older targets who felt younger than their chronological age were perceived as violating prescriptive stereotypes, which in turn decreased ratings of targets' warmth, competence, and likeability, and lessened participants' willingness to interact with targets. Consistent with affordance management theoretical approaches, older adults who defy stereotypicality may be appraised as a threat to younger perceivers' goals and, in turn, face backlash. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).</p>","PeriodicalId":48426,"journal":{"name":"Psychology and Aging","volume":" ","pages":"555-569"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147943262","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Agreement between self-report and device-measured sedentary behavior varies with cognitive function.","authors":"Zhen Yang, Joanna E Moodie, Philippa M Dall, Martine Thomis, Sebastien F M Chastin, Dawn A Skelton, Tom C Russ, Ian J Deary, Simon R Cox, Jannique G Z van Uffelen","doi":"10.1037/pag0000977","DOIUrl":"10.1037/pag0000977","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Sedentary behavior is a modifiable lifestyle factor associated with health and well-being among older adults. Self-report and device-based measures are commonly used to assess this behavior, but the agreement between the two approaches varies considerably. To better understand the role of cognitive function in discrepancies between measures of sedentary behavior among older adults, we conducted a secondary analysis to examine the cross-sectional association between cognitive function and the agreement between self-report and device-measured sedentary behavior in 257 participants (<i>M</i>_age = 78.9 years) from the Wave 4 of Lothian Birth Cohort 1936. Participants completed 13 cognitive tests assessing general cognitive function, crystallized ability, visuospatial ability, verbal memory, and processing speed. They also completed a paper-and-pencil questionnaire to self-report sedentary behavior and wore activPAL accelerometers on their thighs to record total sedentary time. We found that the agreement between the two measures was weak. Poorer cognitive function (general and all four cognitive domains) was significantly associated with poorer agreement, evidenced by larger difference scores in regression models adjusted for activPAL-measured sedentary behavior, sex, age, body mass index, and self-rated health. Our results add to the previous literature by suggesting that cognitive function may affect the accuracy of self-report sedentary behavior among older adults compared with activPAL, highlighting the importance of considering cognitive function when selecting sedentary behavior measures and interpreting findings in aging populations. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).</p>","PeriodicalId":48426,"journal":{"name":"Psychology and Aging","volume":" ","pages":"658-665"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147277566","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Directions in the longitudinal relationship between volunteering and memory function in older adults: A 10-year perspective.","authors":"Cheng-Cheng Niu, Jing Yu","doi":"10.1037/pag0000986","DOIUrl":"10.1037/pag0000986","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Participation in volunteering activities has benefits for older adults' cognitive function, but the dynamic interplay and direction of this association, particularly on a specific cognitive domain (memory), remains unclear. Using longitudinal data of older adults aged 60 years and older (<i>N</i> = 14,521) from the nationally representative Health and Retirement Study from 2010 to 2020, this study conducted latent growth curve models and random intercept cross-lagged panel models to examine the trajectories of formal and informal volunteering and their reciprocal relationships with objective and subjective memory function, respectively. Results showed a linear decline in both formal and informal volunteering over the decade, and the trajectories of volunteering were positively associated with the developmental trends of memory, as evidenced by both intercept-intercept and slope-slope correlations. In addition, directional analysis revealed that volunteering positively predicted subsequent objective memory, but not vice versa. Subjective memory predicted older adults' subsequent engagement in volunteering rather than objective memory. Note that the prediction of volunteering on subjective memory differed by type of volunteering, with only formal volunteering predicting subsequent subjective memory, but not informal volunteering. The findings underscore the importance of formal volunteering as a structured activity to support cognitive function in older adults, particularly in maintaining objective memory, while also demonstrating the role of subjective memory in motivating future volunteer engagement. Practical interventions may prioritize sustaining participation through accessible, tailored programs and addressing the observed decline in volunteering over time. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).</p>","PeriodicalId":48426,"journal":{"name":"Psychology and Aging","volume":" ","pages":"597-612"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147624417","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A meta-analysis on age-related differences in mentalizing: The role of task characteristics.","authors":"Anne-Lise Florkin, Daniele Gatti, Serena Lecce, Elena Cavallini","doi":"10.1037/pag0000988","DOIUrl":"10.1037/pag0000988","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>As people age, declines in mentalizing, the ability to attribute mental states to others, have been frequently reported. More than a decade ago, Henry et al. (2013) conducted a foundational meta-analysis on age-related mentalizing differences, reporting consistent declines in older adults regardless of task features. Since then, the literature has expanded substantially, extending their conclusions while also revealing inconsistencies that highlight the complexity of age-related mentalizing differences. Considering this, we conducted an updated meta-analysis to reassess these differences and examine whether task-related characteristics moderate the effects, directly building on the work of Henry et al. The analysis included 73 studies and tested various (and novel) moderators such as task domain (cognitive, affective, mixed), modality (verbal, visual-static, visual-dynamic), task type (e.g., interpretation of actions, shared world knowledge), ecological validity, and respondent perspective (first-, second-, or third-person). Results confirmed and extended previous findings, showing that older adults exhibit significant declines in mentalizing compared to younger adults (<i>g</i> = 0.78), and that these deficits are specific to mentalizing rather than general cognitive performance. However, only one moderator significantly influenced the effect and should be interpreted cautiously, given the small number of contributing effect sizes, suggesting a general age-related decline in mentalizing rather than effects driven by specific task characteristics. Notably, most tasks relied on third-person perspectives and lacked ecological validity, highlighting the need for more ecologically valid, interactive, and second-person paradigms. Such approaches may help clarify whether tasks that are more engaging, socially meaningful, and reflective of real-world interactions could positively affect older adults' mentalizing. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).</p>","PeriodicalId":48426,"journal":{"name":"Psychology and Aging","volume":" ","pages":"640-657"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147785869","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Learning about a heightened genetic risk for dementia: Expected stigma is greater than experienced stigma.","authors":"Shana D Stites, Mehek Dedhia, Kristin Harkins, Jason Karlawish, Jessica B Langbaum, Mara Mather, Sarah J Barber","doi":"10.1037/pag0000970","DOIUrl":"10.1037/pag0000970","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>What social repercussions do older adults expect to experience if they learn they are at heightened genetic risk for Alzheimer's disease (AD)? We compared these individuals' hypothetical expectations to the actual experiences of AD stigma reported by those who knew their apolipoprotein E (<i>APOE</i>) ϵ<i>4</i> genotype, a key genetic risk factor for AD dementia. As part of a multisession study, participants aged 60-85 completed a 23-item modified Social Impact Scale to assess AD stigma. At Time 1, participants who knew their <i>APOE</i> genotype were divided into two experiential groups: <i>APOE</i> ϵ<i>4</i> carriers (<i>n</i> = 65) and ϵ<i>4</i> noncarriers (<i>n</i> = 46). Experiential group participants reported their experiences of stigma. Participants unaware of their <i>APOE</i> genotype (<i>n</i> = 180) formed the hypothetical group and reported the level of stigma they expected if they were to learn they had an elevated risk for AD. Results showed that expected stigma was significantly greater than experienced stigma. At Time 1, mean agreement with modified Social Impact Scale statements was 26.1% in the hypothetical group compared with only 2.3% in the ϵ<i>4</i> carrier experiential group. The largest expectation-experience gaps concerned competence and social belonging. These findings suggest that older adults overestimate the social consequences of learning they are at genetic risk for AD. Theoretically, the results add to our understanding of the disability paradox, which refers to outsiders predicting worse life outcomes for people with chronic conditions than those individuals report themselves. Our findings show similar mispredictions occur even in the absence of symptoms. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).</p>","PeriodicalId":48426,"journal":{"name":"Psychology and Aging","volume":" ","pages":"613-625"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13651781/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147277557","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}