title: Are ongoing cumulative chronic stressors associated with optimism and pessimism in the second half of life?
abstract: This study examined the relationship between ongoing cumulative chronic stressors (OCCSs) and optimism and pessimism during the second half of life. The sample comprised of 7166 participants who completed the 2006 Health and Retirement Study's (HRS) psychosocial questionnaire. The association between OCCSs and optimism and pessimism was evaluated among the individuals in the second half of life. The number of OCCSs was associated with both optimism and pessimism. However, the interaction between OCCSs and age was associated with pessimism alone. The relationship between "very upsetting" OCCSs and pessimism was significant among midlife and young old, but not among old-old participants. A larger number of OCCSs in the second half of life has a deleterious association with optimism and pessimism; however, it may be that the large sample allowed small effects to become significant. Nevertheless, the association between OCCSs and pessimism is regulated by age. Old-old participants maintain a stable level of pessimism, which is not related to the number of "very upsetting" OCCSs that they reported. Implications of the results are discussed.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Gerontology, Faculty of Social Welfare and Health Sciences , University of Haifa , Haifa , Israel.
authors.forename: Yuval
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Palgi
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013694:Temperament; D014481:United States