Emotion and memory across ages: recognition performance and false memory susceptibility

Abstract

Aging is a core component of lifespan development that affects different segments of cognitive functioning, including memory, learning, emotion regulation, etc. Current study aimed to examine the influence of age on emotion-related memory recognition and susceptibility to false memories. Guided by socio-emotional selectivity theory and fuzzy-trace theory, the research aimed to assess age-related variances in the retrieval of emotion related memories and the recognition of positive and negative emotion associated false memories. A total of 147 Bangladeshi participants, categorized into young adults, middle-aged adults, and older adults, were recruited through purposive sampling. Participants completed a word recognition task featuring positive and negative emotional words. Results from a one-way ANOVA revealed significant age differences in emotional memory performance (p < .05), with older adults demonstrating enhanced recognition of positive stimuli, consistent with the positivity effect. In addition, older adults showed higher rates of emotional false memories compared to younger and middle-aged groups. These findings suggest that emotional valence influences memory accuracy differently across age groups, reflecting age-related shifts in cognitive-emotional priorities. By extending this line of research to a non-Western context, the study contributes to a more culturally inclusive understanding of emotional memory and cognitive aging. Dhaka Univ. J. Biol. Sci. 35(2), 39-56, 2026 (July)