Daily Stress Processes as Contributors to and Targets for Promoting Cognitive Health in Later Life

dc.contributor.authorStawski, R.S.
dc.contributor.authorCerino, E.S.
dc.contributor.authorWitzel, D.D.
dc.contributor.authorMacDonald, S.W.S.
dc.date.accessioned2021-10-01T21:11:28Z
dc.date.available2021-10-01T21:11:28Z
dc.date.copyright2019en_US
dc.date.issued2019
dc.description.abstractObjective: The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that daily stress processes, including exposure and emotional reactivity to daily stressors, are associated with response time inconsistency (RTI), an indicator of processing efficiency and cognitive health. Furthermore, we considered daily stress-cognitive health associations at the level of individual differences and within-persons over time. Methods: Participants were 111 older adults (Mean=80 years, Range=66–95) enrolled in a measurement burst study where assessments of response-time based cognitive performance, stressful experiences, and affect were administered on each of 6 days over a two-week period. This protocol was repeated every six months for 2.5 years. Multilevel modeling was used to examine frequency of stressor exposure, non-stressor affect, and affect reactivity to daily stressors as individual difference and time-varying predictors of RTI. Results: Between-persons, higher levels of non-stressor negative affect (b=0.41, 95%CI: −0.01, 0.83, p=.055) and negative affect reactivity (b=0.80, 95%CI: 0.18, 1.42, p=.012) were associated with greater RTI. Within-persons over time, higher levels of negative affect (b=0.20, 95%CI: 0.06, 0.34, p=.006) and negative affect reactivity (b=0.13, 95%CI: 0.02, 0.24, p=.018) were associated with increased RTI among the oldest portion of the sample, while higher levels of positive affect (b=−0.11, 95% CI: −0.21, −0.02, p=.019) were associated with reduced RTI. Conclusions: Negative affect reactions to daily stressors are associated with compromised RTI both between- and within-persons. Findings suggest that emotional reactions to daily stressors contribute to compromise older adults’ cognitive health, while increased positive affect may be beneficial.en_US
dc.description.reviewstatusRevieweden_US
dc.description.scholarlevelFacultyen_US
dc.description.sponsorshipSource of Funding: This work was supported by the National Institute on Aging at the National Institutes of Health (R21 AG045575, R01 AG12448), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, and the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research. S. MacDonald graciously acknowledges support by the Royal Society of Canada’s College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists.en_US
dc.identifier.citationStawski, R.S., Cerino, E.S., Witzel, D.D., & MacDonald, S.W.S. (2019). Daily Stress Processes as Contributors to and Targets for Promoting Cognitive Health in Later Life. Psychosomatic Medicine, 81(1), 81-89. https://doi.org/10.1097/PSY.0000000000000643en_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.1097/PSY.0000000000000643
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1828/13426
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherPsychosomatic Medicineen_US
dc.subjectDaily Stressen_US
dc.subjectAffecten_US
dc.subjectDaily Diaryen_US
dc.subjectCognitive Healthen_US
dc.subjectAgingen_US
dc.titleDaily Stress Processes as Contributors to and Targets for Promoting Cognitive Health in Later Lifeen_US
dc.typeArticleen_US

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