Stressor Frequency, Severity, and Variability in Severity and Their Associations with Daily Memory Lapses

Open Access
- Author:
- Calfee, Kris
- Graduate Program:
- Human Development and Family Studies
- Degree:
- Master of Science
- Document Type:
- Master Thesis
- Date of Defense:
- October 08, 2024
- Committee Members:
- Soomi Lee, Thesis Advisor/Co-Advisor
Marty Sliwinski, Committee Member
Douglas Teti, Program Head/Chair - Keywords:
- stress
memory
cognition
aging
daily stressors - Abstract:
- Long-term negative impacts of stress on memory have been well established; however day-to-day associations between stressors and memory, such as specific manifestations of stressors that may degrade daily memory, have not been fully examined. Data from an 8-day diary study in the Midlife in the United States study (n=1,800) were used to conceptualize three patterns of daily stressors: frequency, severity, and variability. Potential differences by age in these associations were also examined. Participants reported 7 types of stressors (e.g., home-related, discrimination) they encountered, which were summed daily (frequency). On days when a stressor was encountered, they reported how stressful it was (severity). Individual standard deviation of stressor severity across the week (variability) was also calculated. Memory lapses were reported with 9 items each day. After controlling for sociodemographic and health covariates, results from multi-level modeling revealed that participants reported more memory lapses on days when they had greater frequency (B=.14, SE=.01, p <.001) and higher severity (B=.06, SE=.01, p <.001) of stressors. Participants with greater frequency (B=.79, SE=.04, p <.001) and higher severity (B=.21, SE=.02, p <.001) of stressors and greater variability in stressor severity also reported more memory lapses on average. Age moderated the within-person association of stressor frequency, such that on days when older individuals reported encountering more stressors, they reported less memory lapses compared to younger individuals. These findings highlight that even short-term stressor exposure, particularly frequent or high-severity stressors, may have negative associations with day-to-day memory, while these associations may become weaker with advancing age.