Remember to stay positive: affect and prospective memory in everyday life
Remember to stay positive: affect and prospective memory in everyday life
The present study aimed to investigate the affect-cognition interplay in young and older adults by studying prospective memory (PM), the realisation of delayed intentions. While most previous studies on the topic were conducted in the laboratory, we examined the influence of naturally occurring affect on PM tasks carried out in participants' everyday lives. For seven consecutive days, participants were asked to rate their affective state nine times per day and send text messages either at specific times (time-based PM) or when a particular event occurred (event-based PM). Results showed that within-participants changes in valence from more positive to more negative affect were associated with decreased PM performance. This was similarly true for young and older adults. The design used allowed linkage of within-participants fluctuations of affect and cognitive functions, constituting a methodological advancement. Results suggest that positive affect has the potential to improve cognitive functioning in everyday life.
179-190
Pupillo, Francesco
41f4b087-db2a-4aba-9126-a562ac3d8f50
Powell, Daniel
e1e53a46-a37b-425b-ac15-e82f99033f46
Phillips, Louise H.
1a970560-e177-4e9d-905a-879756e8501d
Schnitzspahn, Katharina
107ca23d-e4bc-4e3f-89e9-7095d3ec2757
9 January 2022
Pupillo, Francesco
41f4b087-db2a-4aba-9126-a562ac3d8f50
Powell, Daniel
e1e53a46-a37b-425b-ac15-e82f99033f46
Phillips, Louise H.
1a970560-e177-4e9d-905a-879756e8501d
Schnitzspahn, Katharina
107ca23d-e4bc-4e3f-89e9-7095d3ec2757
Pupillo, Francesco, Powell, Daniel, Phillips, Louise H. and Schnitzspahn, Katharina
(2022)
Remember to stay positive: affect and prospective memory in everyday life.
Applied Cognitive Psychology, 36 (1), .
(doi:10.1002/acp.3908).
Abstract
The present study aimed to investigate the affect-cognition interplay in young and older adults by studying prospective memory (PM), the realisation of delayed intentions. While most previous studies on the topic were conducted in the laboratory, we examined the influence of naturally occurring affect on PM tasks carried out in participants' everyday lives. For seven consecutive days, participants were asked to rate their affective state nine times per day and send text messages either at specific times (time-based PM) or when a particular event occurred (event-based PM). Results showed that within-participants changes in valence from more positive to more negative affect were associated with decreased PM performance. This was similarly true for young and older adults. The design used allowed linkage of within-participants fluctuations of affect and cognitive functions, constituting a methodological advancement. Results suggest that positive affect has the potential to improve cognitive functioning in everyday life.
Text
Applied Cognitive Psychology - 2021 - Pupillo - Remember to stay positive Affect and prospective memory in everyday life
- Version of Record
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 13 December 2021
e-pub ahead of print date: 18 December 2021
Published date: 9 January 2022
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 511486
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/511486
ISSN: 0888-4080
PURE UUID: 47374d2c-4b70-4517-8c3c-f40ad687b533
Catalogue record
Date deposited: 18 May 2026 16:33
Last modified: 19 May 2026 02:13
Export record
Altmetrics
Contributors
Author:
Francesco Pupillo
Author:
Daniel Powell
Author:
Louise H. Phillips
Author:
Katharina Schnitzspahn
Download statistics
Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.
View more statistics