Table 2.
Effects of Detached and Positive Reappraisal Instructions on Subjective Target Emotion Experience, Physiological Reactivity, and Facial Expression in Three Age Groups
| Detached Reappraisal | Positive Reappraisal | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20s | 40s | 60s | 20s | 40s | 60s | ||
| Subjective Experience* | Watch | 4.43 (.42) | 5.30 (.41) | 5.03 (.40) | 4.58 (.40) | 5.21 (.39) | 5.88 (.42) |
| Reappraise | 3.25 (.45) | 4.08 (.43) | 5.08 (.43) | 4.49 (.42) | 5.42 (.41) | 5.20 (.44) | |
| Physiological Reactivitya* | Watch | .01 (.07) | .04 (.07) | −.10 (.07) | .01 (.07) | −.02 (.07) | .22 (.07) |
| Reappraise | −.13 (.08) | −.05 (.08) | .02 (.08) | .05 (.08) | .05 (.07) | .06 (.08) | |
| Facial Expressionb | Watch | .28 (.08) | .38 (.08) | .30 (.08) | .30 (.07) | .23 (.07) | .33 (.08) |
| Reappraise | .14 (.09) | .28 (.09) | .21 (.09) | .19 (.08) | .27 (.08) | .32 (.09) | |
Note. Cell values reflect estimates based upon modified population marginal means; standard errors are in parentheses.
The three-way interaction among Instruction (Just Watch vs. Reappraise), Age Group, and Reappraisal Type was significant at p < .05.
More negative Physiological Reactivity values indicate smaller increases in arousal from baseline to film clip. Apparent increases from Just Watch trials to Reappraise trials are an artifact of the separate z-scoring for these trials, and reflect smaller decreases in reactivity across trials rather than actual increases.
Mean values represent the average intensity of target emotion expression across all 5-second bins of the film clip.