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. 2023 Feb:177:108500.
doi: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108500. Epub 2023 Jan 13.

How aging couples' emotional and physiological associations change across positive, supportive, and conflictual discussions: Roles of capitalization and responsive behaviors

M Rosie Shrout  1 , Alexandra E Black  2 , Stephanie J Wilson  3 , Megan E Renna  4 , Annelise D Madison  5 , Janice K Kiecolt-Glaser  6 , Harry T Reis  2
Affiliations

How aging couples' emotional and physiological associations change across positive, supportive, and conflictual discussions: Roles of capitalization and responsive behaviors

M Rosie Shrout et al. Biol Psychol. 2023 Feb.

Abstract

Background: Couples' emotions and physiology change across interactions and based on behaviors. Aging couples' emotions and physiology may be closely related as they spend more time together and rely on each other for support. We examined aging couples' emotional and physiological associations across multiple indices and marital interactions; we also assessed how couples' capitalization and responsive behaviors during the first discussion were protective in subsequent emotional conversations.

Methods: Married couples (n = 107 couples, 214 individuals) engaged in positive event, social support, and conflict discussions. Emotional and physiological assessments across discussions included: positive and negative emotion, electrodermal activity, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, and heart rate variability. We coded partners' capitalization and responsive behaviors during the first discussion.

Results: There were ties in spouses' positive emotion, negative emotion, electrodermal activity, systolic blood pressure, heart rate, and heart rate variability during positive, supportive, and conflictual discussions. Emotional and physiological associations reflecting shared stress (negative emotion, electrodermal activity, systolic blood pressure) were stronger in couples who were less capitalizing or responsive earlier that day; associations reflecting physiological adaptation (heart rate variability) were stronger for more capitalizing and responsive couples.

Conclusion: Aging couples' emotions and physiology tracked together during discussions central to maintaining relationships, and their past behaviors carried over into future interactions and across contexts. Enthusiastic, caring, and understanding behaviors may protect partners from shared emotional and physiological stress; lacking such behaviors may increase emotional and physiological vulnerability. This research identifies behavioral, emotional, and physiological pathways connecting relationships to health in adulthood.

Keywords: Capitalization; Conflict; Health; Marriage; Relationships; Responsiveness; Stress.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Conflicting Interests The author(s) declared that there were no conflicts of interest with respect to the authorship or the publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Spouses’ (A) negative emotion, (B) positive emotion, (C) electrodermal activity, (D) diastolic blood pressure, (E) systolic blood pressure, (F) heart rate, and (G) heart rate variability trajectories across discussions by gender. HRV data represent back transformed geometric numbers. Error bars are ±1 standard error. +p<0.10; *p<0.05; **p<0.01; ***p<0.001
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Visual depiction of significant interactions for (A) men’s average negative emotion predicted by their wives’ negative emotion and capitalization behavior, (B) women’s average EDA predicted by their husbands’ EDA and responsive behavior, and (C) women’s average EDA predicted by their husbands’ EDA and their own responsive behavior. Asterisks indicate significant simple slopes. +p<0.10; *p<0.05; **p<0.01; ***p<0.001
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Visual depiction of significant interactions during conflict for (A) men’s SBP predicted by their wives’ SBP and their own capitalization behavior; (B) men’s SBP predicted by their wives’ SBP and their own responsive behavior; (C) women’s HRV predicted by their husbands’ HRV and capitalization behavior; and (D) women’s HRV predicted by their husbands’ HRV and responsive behavior. Asterisks indicate significant simple slopes. +p<0.10; *p<0.05; **p<0.01; ***p<0.001
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