Individual and contextual predictors of preferences for solving everyday problems alone and in collaboration with others were investigated in a sample community-dwelling older adults (M age7 1.80 years, SDˆ5.78, rangeˆ56-87, 51 men, 56 women). Gender differences in problem-solving preferences were found in gender-stereotyped domains (e.g., meal-preparation; house repair). In several problem domains, more positive social comparisons of problem-solving ability were related to greater preferences for solving problems alone and lesser preferences for solving problems with others. Marital status, temporal comparisons of ability, and perceived health and control were related to problem-solving preferences in some problem domains. Results are discussed from a contextual perspective that focuses on the t between individuals' personal and social resources and their preferred approaches to solving everyday problems.

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We tested interventions to reduce “sunk-cost bias,” the tendency to continue investing in failing plans even when those plans have soured and are no longer rewarding. We showed members of a national U.S. life-span panel a hypothetical scenario about a failing plan that was halfway complete. Participants were randomly assigned to an intervention to focus on how to improve the situation, an intervention to focus on thoughts and feelings, or a no-intervention control group. First, we found that the thoughts and feelings intervention reduced sunk-cost bias in decisions about project completion, as compared to the improvement intervention and the no-intervention control. Second, older age was associated with greater willingness to cancel the failing plan across all three groups. Third, we found that introspection processes helped to explain the effectiveness of the interventions. Specifically, the larger reduction in sunk-cost bias as observed in the thoughts and feelings intervention (vs. the improvement intervention) was associated with suppression of future-oriented thoughts of eventual success, and with suppression of augmentations of the scenario that could make it seem reasonable to continue the plan. Fourth, we found that introspection processes were related to age differences in decisions. Older people were less likely to mention future-oriented thoughts of eventual success associated with greater willingness to continue the failing plan. We discuss factors to consider when designing interventions for reducing sunk-cost bias.

Background and Objectives Climate change threatens well-being and has increased the prevalence of weather-related disasters. We investigated age differences in emotional well-being among adults who had experienced hurricane-related, unavoidable stressors. Socioemotional selectivity theory (SST, Carstensen, 2006) posits that age-related motivational shifts buffer older adults against psychological distress, whereas the strength and vulnerability integration model (SAVI, Charles, 2010) posits that unavoidable stressors are more detrimental to older adults’ well-being compared to younger adults. Research Design and Methods We used existing self-report data from a life-span sample of adults (N=618, M age= 58.44 years, SD=16.03, 18-96 years) who resided in the US Gulf Coast region. The sample was recruited in 2016 to examine sequelae of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and contacted again after the 2017 and 2018 hurricane seasons. In 2016, participants reported their depression, anxiety, and trauma history. After the 2017-2018 hurricane seasons, participants reported their depression, post-traumatic stress, exposure to hurricane-related adversities, injuries, and casualties, self-efficacy, and perceived health. Results In line with SST, older age was associated with reporting significantly fewer depression and PTSD symptoms, even after controlling for exposure to hurricane-related adversities, injuries and casualties, health, self-efficacy, and pre-hurricane depression, anxiety, and trauma. The association between older age and fewer depression symptoms was stronger among those who experienced hurricane-related adversities compared to those who had not, in contrast to predictions based on SAVI. Discussion and Implications We discuss the implications of age-related strengths in emotional well-being for policy and practice in the context of the ongoing climate crisis.