Anger, aging, and reproductive aging: observations from the Seattle Midlife Women's Health Study

Although investigators have devoted significant effort to understanding women's experiences of depressed mood and clinical depression during the menopausal transition and early postmenopause, they have focused less on women's perimenopausal experiences of emotional arousal, including anger. The purpose of these analyses was to examine the influence of aging and reproductive aging stages on women's reports of anger.

Participants aged 35-55 years from the Seattle Midlife Women's Health Study population-based cohort (N=501 at baseline) completed an annual health report. Participants completed the State-Trait Anger Inventory (STAXI) (State Anger, Trait Anger, Anger Temperament, Anger Reaction, Anger-in, and Anger Control subscales) and the SCL90 Hostility scale on up to five occasions during the course of the study. Reproductive aging stages were assessed using menstrual calendars and questionnaire data. Menstrual calendars were used to identify menopausal transition stages using the Mitchell (2000) criteria for stages of reproductive aging: late reproductive stages (LRS1 and LRS2), early menopausal transition stage (EMT), late menopausal transition stage (LMT), and postmenopause (PM). Multilevel modeling with Mixed Models Analysis of Linear Models (SPSS 28) was used to examine the effects of age and reproductive aging stages on the repeated measures of anger and hostility using the STAXI Scales and SCL-90 Hostility Subscale.

Age was significantly related to most anger measures, with State and Trait Anger and Anger Control increasing with age. Anger Temperament, Anger Reaction, Anger Expressed Aggressively, and Hostility each decreased significantly with age. Only Anger Suppressed was not related to age. When accounting for age effects, Reproductive Aging Stages significantly affected State and Trait Anger and Anger Temperament: each decreased after the late reproductive stages with women's progression through further reproductive aging stages.

Aging was significantly related to anger, with anger expression indicators decreasing with age, suggesting emotion regulation may occur during midlife. When aging was taken into account, reproductive aging was associated with decreasing levels of State and Trait Anger and Anger Temperament Scale scores. Both chronological aging and reproductive aging had important effects on dimensions of anger, warranting further attention during midlife and the menopausal transition and early postmenopause.