Emotion, Aging, and Decision Making

Starting soon · Not applicable

Conditions studied: Motivation, Aging, Health Behavior, Emotions, Social Behavior

In brief

Exercise is routinely recommended because of its benefits for physical, cognitive, and mental health. It is especially beneficial for older adults due to its potential buffering effects against Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (Luck et al., 2014). However, little is known about how to best encourage older adults to exercise. Based on behavior change theory, different intrapersonal and interpersonal motivational factors are likely to be relevant during the contemplation, action, and maintenance stages of behavior change. Generally, as a result of motivational shifts toward prioritizing positivity and socially meaningful goals with advancing age (Carstensen, 2006), socioemotional aspects of decision making may become more salient and influential for older adults (Mikels et al., 2015; Peter et al., 2011). Our previous work has demonstrated that positive affect (Mikels et al., 2020) and social goals (Steltenpohl et al., 2019) play a critical role in older adults' motivation to exercise, but these two lines of research have not been integrated to date. Recent work indicates that positive affect is particularly beneficial for health when shared in social connections (Fredrickson, 2016; Major et al., 2018), and the proposed work will, for the first time, examine how shared interpersonal positivity may impact exercise decision making and behavior, especially during the contemplation and action/maintenance stages of behavior change. But who are the older adults that benefit the most from exercise in terms of physical, cognitive, and mental health (and should be hence be targeted with messages)? Not all older adults reap the benefits of exercise (Sparks, 2014) and, conversely, sedentary older adults have the most to gain. Overall, the current proposed research program is innovative in its (a) translational application of insights from affective, cognitive, and aging theory and research to understand the antecedents and outcomes of exercise decision making in younger and older adults, (b) conceptualization of both the social and emotional aspects of decision making, (c) development of novel methods for health messaging that incorporate social influences, and (d) novel assessments of the exercise-health link.

Key facts

Study ID: NCT06071130
Run by: DePaul University
People needed: 240
Starts: 2025-09-03
Expected to finish: 2027-12-31
Last updated by the study team: 2025-02-12

Who can join

Age: 65 and older, up to 80. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: accepted.

You may qualify if…

Experiment 4A: We will follow the standard exclusion protocol used in previous Fit \& Strong! studies (e.g., Hughes et al., 2004; 2006). The participant's physician will be contacted for clearance to participate if they have a history of high blood pressure, or experience dizziness, lightheadedness, or chest pain or pressure during physical activities (walking, climbing stairs, and household chores, etc.) (see document: "E4_NeedforPhysicianScreeningQuestionnaire.docx"). Additionally, physicians will be contacted if participants indicate that they fall, feel unsteady, or use an assistive walking or standing device. For these conditions and any special considerations that a participant may express, physicians will be contacted for clearance.
Experiment 4B: Only participants who participated in Experiment 4A are eligible to participate in Experiment 4B.

You may not qualify if…

Experiment 4A: We will follow the standard exclusion protocol used in previous Fit \& Strong! studies (e.g., Hughes et al., 2004; 2006). For instance, participants will be excluded for joint steroid injections within 3 months, knee or hip surgery within the previous 6 months or next year, rheumatoid arthritis or other systemic inflammatory arthritis, or uncontrolled diabetes. The participant's physician will be contacted for clearance to participate if they have a history of high blood pressure, or experience dizziness, lightheadedness, or chest pain or pressure during physical activities (walking, climbing stairs, and household chores, etc.) (see document: "E4_NeedforPhysicianScreeningQuestionnaire.docx"). Additionally, physicians will be contacted if participants indicate that they fall, feel unsteady, or use an assistive walking or standing device. For these conditions and any special considerations that a participant may express, physicians will be contacted for clearance (see document: "StatementofMedicalClearanceforExercise.docx" and "CoverLetterforMedicalClearanceforExercise.docx").
Experiment 4B: Participants who did not participate in Experiment 4A are not eligible to participate in Experiment 4B.

Where it is running

DePaul University — Chicago, Illinois, United States

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

Trial information comes from ClinicalTrials.gov and is refreshed daily. TrialsForMe does not provide medical care and does not run the studies it lists.