Age Related Positivity Effect in Decision Making: Implications for Choice Preferences and Decision Quality

Prior research indicates reliable age differences in decision making processes consistent with the age-related positivity effect: Relative to younger adults, older adults demonstrate greater attention and memory for positive versus negative information about choice alternatives (e.g., Löckenhoff & Carstensen, 2007; Mather et al., 2005). However, the implications of age-related positivity for decision outcomes remain less clear. To address this knowledge gap, we examined the decision structures under which older versus younger adults’ attentional preferences result in differential choice quality. In the present study community-dwelling older and younger adults made decisions among doctors and hospitals based on positive, negative, and neutral patient reviews. Preferential attention toward reviews was surreptitiously measured via eye-tracking. Choice quality was assessed by rigging alternatives to vary systematically in average review valence. Depending on decision structure, optimal alternatives were differentiated from suboptimal ones by the number of positive or negative reviews. Consistent with prior findings, older adults paid more attention to positive reviews and less attention to negative reviews compared to younger adults. However, age differences in choice quality were moderated by decision structure: Younger adults made superior decisions when negative reviews differentiated optimal from suboptimal alternatives, but no age differences were observed when the options were differentiated by positive reviews. These results indicate that the age-related positivity effect may impair choice quality when optimal decisions demand attention to negative information, but not when positive information is critical to optimal choices. This study addresses an important gap in the research literature by demonstrating a critical link between older adults’ decision processes and outcomes. Results from the study will inform future efforts to facilitate health-related decision making and improve choice quality for older adults.