Arousal reappraisal in younger and older adults.

Prior research suggests individuals can reappraise autonomic arousal under stress to improve performance. However, it is unclear whether effects are apparent at all ages. Seventy-three younger and 47 older adults received guided instruction to be in a state of challenge or threat while completing a mental arithmetic task.

Emotion regulation and emotion perception in aging: A perspective on age-related differences and similarities.

The aim of this chapter is to review recent literature describing how developments in cognition may contribute to age-related changes in emotional processes, specifically emotion regulation and emotion perception. In general, older adults are more likely than young adults to report feeling positive. Prominent conceptual models of cognitive and emotional development in aging attempt to explain why the affective lives of older adults might not undergo similar age-related declines as other cognitive and physical systems.