The role of automatic and controlled processes in the positivity effect for older adults

Panebianco, Mariateresa; Caprì, Tindara; Panebianco, Michela; Fabio, Rosa Angela

doi:10.1007/s40520-021-02007-6

Cited by 9 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…Therefore, it can be assumed that, although YAs make better decisions depending more on the anticipation of negative outcomes, OAs based them mostly on the anticipation of positive outcomes, which may lead them to underestimate losses and make riskier (and poorer) choices than YAs. This orientation toward positive emotions is consistent with studies highlighting that OAs are more focused on positive emotions, experiencing lower levels of negative emotions but similar levels of positive ones than YAs (e.g., [ 57 , 58 , 59 ]). Thus, a decrease in the quality of decisions under ambiguity and risk may occur with physiological aging, so that OAs, compared to YAs, tend to be more risk-takers, mostly seeking positive outcomes or gains, rather than avoiding negative outcomes or losses.…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Executive Functions in Decision Making under Ambiguity and Risk in Healthy Adults: A Scoping Review Adopting the Hot and Cold Executive Functions Perspective

2022

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Decision making (DM) has a pivotal role in supporting individual autonomy and well-being. It is considered a complex ability exploiting many cognitive functions, among which executive functions (EFs) are crucial. Few studies analyzed the role played by EFs in DM in healthy adults under ambiguity and risk, which are common conditions for most decisions in daily life. This scoping review aims to analyze the relationships between two individual tasks widely used to assess DM under these conditions (Iowa Gambling Task and Game of Dice Task) and EFs. According to the organizing principle that conceptualizes hot and cold EFs, DM under such conditions mainly implies hot EFs, but the relationship with cold EFs is still unclear. Using such an approach, a comprehensive framework is provided, highlighting main findings and identifying possible gaps in the literature. The results suggest different roles played by cold EFs in DM under ambiguity and risk, according to the characteristics of the tasks. The findings can offer guidance to further studies and to design interventions to support DM in healthy adults.

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Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Executive Functions in Decision Making under Ambiguity and Risk in Healthy Adults: A Scoping Review Adopting the Hot and Cold Executive Functions Perspective

2022

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“…By combining the neuroimaging method with ERP measurement, future research could examine how emotional distractors alter brain activation patterns over a longer time period, and whether neural reorganization and compensation in aging occur [ 82 ]. Furthermore, recent research extended the SST and supported a dual-process account of the positivity effect [ 83 , 84 ]. This model raises intriguing questions about how aging might have a different effect on the automatic and effortful control of interference from emotional distractors.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Aging and distractor resistance in working memory: Does emotional valence matter?

et al. 2022

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Background Emotional stimuli used as targets of working memory (WM) tasks can moderate age-related differences in WM performance, showing that aging is associated with reductions in negativity bias. This phenomenon is referred to as the positivity effect. However, there is little research on whether emotional distractors have a similar moderating effect. Moreover, the underlying neural mechanism of this effect has not been studied. In this study, we examined the behavioral and neurophysiological basis for age differences in resistance to emotional distractors within WM. Methods Older adults (n = 30, ages 60–74) and young adults (n = 35, ages 19–26) performed a 2-back task in which a digit was superimposed on a face with a happy, angry, or neutral expression as a distractor. Event-related potential (ERP) was simultaneously recorded to assess P2, N2, and later positive potential (LPP) amplitudes. Results Older adults were less accurate and slower than young adults on the WM task. Moreover, the results demonstrated a significant interaction between age and emotional valence on response accuracy, young adults' performance was worse when the distractor was neutral or positive than when it was negative, but there was no effect of the emotional valence of distractors on older adults’ WM performance. ERP analyses revealed greater P2 amplitude in older adults than young adults, regardless of the emotional valence of distractors. However, older adults and young adults did not differ on N2 or LPP amplitude, and negative distractors elicited greater N2 than positive distractors in both age groups. Conclusions The behavioral findings provided evidence of age-related reductions in negativity bias. Thus, the behavioral measures indicated a positivity effect in WM. However, the ERP results did not show this same interaction. These discrepant results raise questions about whether and to what extent older and young adults differ in controlling the effect of emotional distractors in WM.

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“…The pulvinar influences eye movements and visual attention via its projections to frontal eye fields 315,316 and the ventral visual stream; 317 thus, the vmPFC can influence visual attention via its inputs to the pulvinar. Previous research in which a neutral face or picture is shown next to an emotional face or picture shows age differences in where people spend their time looking, with older adults tending to avoid looking at negative pictures or angry or sad faces compared with younger adults while either showing no difference or a greater bias to attend to positive pictures or happy faces 151,152,155,177,339–343 . However, to date, neuroimaging studies have not yet examined the neural networks associated with these age differences in preferential attention.…”

Section: The Autonomic Compensation Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

The emotion paradox in the aging body and brain

Mather

2024

Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences

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With age, parasympathetic activity decreases, while sympathetic activity increases. Thus, the typical older adult has low heart rate variability (HRV) and high noradrenaline levels. Younger adults with this physiological profile tend to be unhappy and stressed. Yet, with age, emotional experience tends to improve. Why does older adults’ emotional well‐being not suffer as their HRV decreases? To address this apparent paradox, I present the autonomic compensation model. In this model, failing organs, the initial phases of Alzheimer's pathology, and other age‐related diseases trigger noradrenergic hyperactivity. To compensate, older brains increase autonomic regulatory activity in the pregenual prefrontal cortex (PFC). Age‐related declines in nerve conduction reduce the ability of the pregenual PFC to reduce hyperactive noradrenergic activity and increase peripheral HRV. But these pregenual PFC autonomic compensation efforts have a significant impact in the brain, where they bias processing in favor of stimuli that tend to increase parasympathetic activity (e.g., stimuli that increase feelings of safety) and against stimuli that tend to increase sympathetic activity (e.g., threatening stimuli). In summary, the autonomic compensation model posits that age‐related chronic sympathetic/noradrenergic hyperactivity stimulates regulatory attempts that have the side effect of enhancing emotional well‐being.

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The role of automatic and controlled processes in the positivity effect for older adults

Cited by 9 publications

References 32 publications

Executive Functions in Decision Making under Ambiguity and Risk in Healthy Adults: A Scoping Review Adopting the Hot and Cold Executive Functions Perspective

Executive Functions in Decision Making under Ambiguity and Risk in Healthy Adults: A Scoping Review Adopting the Hot and Cold Executive Functions Perspective

Aging and distractor resistance in working memory: Does emotional valence matter?

The emotion paradox in the aging body and brain

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