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Updated: Nov 23, 2025
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Psychophysiological Assessment of the Effectiveness of Emotion Regulation Strategies in Childhood
Published on: February 11, 2017
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Age differences in emotion regulation during ongoing affective life: A naturalistic experience sampling study
Alicia Puente-Martínez1, Zvjezdana Prizmic-Larsen2, Randy J Larsen2
1Department of Psychology, University of the Basque Country.
Developmental Psychology
|December 31, 2020
Summary
Older adults use more emotion regulation strategies, especially when experiencing negative emotions. This "older but wiser" approach contributes to their emotional well-being and reduced negative affect.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Gerontology
- Affective Science
Background:
- Older adults report less negative affect than younger adults.
- The mechanisms behind age-related differences in emotional experience remain unclear.
- Emotion regulation strategies may explain these observed age effects.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how age influences the use of emotion regulation strategies.
- To determine if older adults employ different emotion regulation tactics compared to younger individuals.
- To examine the relationship between negative affect and emotion regulation strategy use across the lifespan.
Main Methods:
- A longitudinal study assessed emotion regulation strategies over 60 days.
- 153 participants aged 18-84 were divided into young, middle-aged, and older adult groups.
- Mixed-effects models analyzed mood regulation strategy use in relation to negative affect and age.
Main Results:
- A significant main effect of age and negative affect on strategy use was found.
- Older adults used a wider variety of emotion regulation strategies.
- Older adults employed these strategies more frequently during periods of negative affect.
Conclusions:
- Older adults' enhanced emotional well-being may stem from adaptive emotion regulation.
- The findings support an "older but wiser" perspective on emotional aging.
- Differential use of emotion regulation strategies is a key factor in age-related emotional differences.
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