Positive affect expression during a play interaction and psychological health among older adults living with cognitive impairment and their adult children

Objectives: We examined the extent to which positive affect expression in play interactions between adult children and their parents living with cognitive impairment was associated with lower depressive symptoms and mental health difficulties for both dyad members. Gender differences in positive affect expression were also examined. Method: Dyads (N = 126) self-reported their depressive symptoms and mental health difficulties. Dyad members later engaged in a video-recorded play interaction together, and their positive affect expression was observationally coded by trained coders in terms of ‘enjoyment’, ‘laughter’, and ‘positive affect towards partner’. Results: Findings from mixed models using the Actor Partner Interdependence Model showed that one’s partner’s positive affect was associated with one’s own lower depressive symptoms. There were no significant actor effects or effects of role (parent vs. child). Results also revealed that women expressed more positive affect and had greater mental health difficulties, but not depressive symptoms. We found that one’s partner’s positive affect expressions were more associated with women’s mental health than men’s mental health. Conclusion: Positive affect expression may be a useful indicator of psychological health in parent-child relationships in which the parent has cognitive impairment. Positive affect may be useful to target in supportive, dyadic, psychosocial interventions.