title: Affect dynamics across the lifespan: with age, heart rate reacts less strongly, but recovers more slowly from unpleasant emotional situations.
abstract: We propose that a comprehensive understanding of age differences in affective responses to emotional situations requires the distinction of 2 components of affect dynamics: reactivity, the deviation from a person's baseline, and recovery, the return to this baseline. The present study demonstrates the utility of this approach with a focus on age differences in responses of negative affect and heart rate to an unpleasant emotional situation in 92 participants aged 14 to 83. The emotional situation was elicited with a social-cognitive stress task. Participants' negative affect and heart rate were measured throughout the task. Results showed that heart rate reactivity decreased, but heart rate recovery time increased, with age. In contrast, no significant age differences were observed in either reactivity or recovery for negative affect. These findings confirm that reactivity to, and recovery from, unpleasant emotional situations are distinct components of affect dynamics. They underscore the multidirectional nature of age differences in affective processes.
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Human Development.
authors.forename: Cornelia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wrzus
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Human Development.
authors.forename: Viktor
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Müller
authors.affiliation: German Institute for Economic Research.
authors.forename: Gert G
authors.initials: GG
authors.lastname: Wagner
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Human Development.
authors.forename: Ulman
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Lindenberger
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Human Development.
authors.forename: Michaela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Riediger
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect / Q000502:physiology*; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology*; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000503:physiopathology*; D055815:Young Adult