Keywords
Age, Emotion regulation, Health, Reactivity, Stress
Abstract
In this meta-analytic review of 31 laboratory studies, we examined if relatively older adults showed lower or higher cardiovascular reactivity compared with relatively younger adults. Results revealed that age was associated with lower heart rate reactivity but higher systolic blood pressure (SBP) reactivity during emotionally evocative tasks. Consistent with the predictions of dynamic integration theory, the result for SBP was moderated by the degree of task activation. These data are discussed in light of existing self-regulatory models and important future research directions.
BYU ScholarsArchive Citation
Birmingham, Wendy C.; Uchino, Bert N.; and Berg, Cynthia A., "Are Older Adults Less or More Physiologically Reactive? A Meta-Analysis of Age-Related Differences in Cardiovascular Reactivity to Laboratory Tasks" (2010). Faculty Publications. 6018.
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/facpub/6018
Document Type
Peer-Reviewed Article
Publication Date
2010
Permanent URL
http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/8747
Publisher
Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences
Language
English
College
Family, Home, and Social Sciences
Department
Psychology