Stress. Just hearing the word sends a jolt through us as we scramble to meet deadlines, pay the bills and face a host of other challenges. Many of us think we’ll be less stressed out in our golden years.

But is that the case? How do we develop wellbeing as we age, especially in the way we manage our emotions?

Brock University graduate student Thalia Semplonius is aiming to find out.

Semplonius is seeking people 60 years and older to answer a range of questions that measure their sense of wellbeing.

But there’s a twist to her research: Semplonius is using a similar questionnaire that a long-running Brock University study is using to examine stress levels and wellbeing in Brock undergraduate students.

She plans to compare wellbeing in young and older populations to see how we can develop wellbeing as we age, especially in how we deal with our emotions.

“Emotion regulation is thought to improve with age, but few direct comparisons of emotion regulation have been made between these two age groups,” she explains. “This is important because aging often is seen as a time of decline, and this may not be true in some cases, especially for the young-old who are very active.”

The research also aims to shed light on a “chicken-or-the-egg” question: does wellbeing cause us to better manage our emotions over time? Or does a healthy way of managing our emotions lead to happiness and wellbeing over time?

People 60 years of age and older who wish to participate in the study can contact Semplonius at: ts11jy@brocku.ca

For interviews on the research, contact: Thalia Semplonius, ts11jy@brocku.ca and Teena Willoughby, psychology professor, twilloughby@BrockU.CA

-30-

For more information, please contact:

Cathy Majtenyi
Research Communications
905-688-5550 ext. 5789
905-321-0566
cmajtenyi@brocku.ca

Dan Dakin
Media Relations Officer
905-688-5550 ext. 5353
289-241-8288
ddakin@brocku.ca