Affective Neuroscience of Aging: A Domain of Surprising Resilience

Emotional well-being often remains stable—or even improves—in later life, despite age-related declines in heart rate variability, increased noradrenergic activity, and structural loss in prefrontal brain regions. This talk introduces the autonomic compensation model, which explains this paradox by highlighting brain–body mechanisms that help preserve emotional functioning with age. I will describe how age-related changes in autonomic function—such as reduced parasympathetic tone and heightened sympathetic arousal—may engage prefrontal regulatory systems that shift attention and appraisal toward emotionally positive, less arousing stimuli. I will also present new evidence that behavioral strategies like slow-paced breathing, which enhance parasympathetic activity, can influence both emotional well-being and Alzheimer’s disease–related biomarkers. Together, these findings demonstrate the value of integrating autonomic and affective neuroscience to understand resilience in emotional aging.