Anxiety and depressive symptoms differentially moderate the relationship between cognitive reappraisal and financial exploitation vulnerability in older adults.

OBJECTIVES

Financial exploitation (FE) vulnerability in older adults is a growing public health concern and may signal future cognitive decline. This study investigated the associations between FE vulnerability and cognitive reappraisal and whether this varies by anxiety and depressive symptoms.

METHOD: One hundred and fifty-two older adults without dementia completed the Perceived Financial Vulnerability Scale (PFVS), Emotion Regulation Questionnaire-Cognitive Reappraisal subscale, Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), and Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Hierarchical regressions tested associations between FE vulnerability, reappraisal, and anxiety and depression levels. Moderation analyses evaluated whether mood symptomatology influenced the PFVS-reappraisal link, followed by simple slopes and Johnson-Neyman analyses. Models were adjusted for age, sex, race, education, and income.

RESULTS

FE vulnerability was associated with cognitive reappraisal (β=-0.33, p = 0.047) and anxiety (β=0.34, p < 0.001). The PFVS-reappraisal association was moderated by anxiety (β=0.21, p = 0.005) and depressive symptoms (β=-0.12, p = 0.033). Greater reappraisal was linked to reduced PFVS at lower anxiety (β=-0.52, p = 0.012) and higher depression (β=-0.53, p = 0.020). Johnson-Neyman analyses identified significance for anxiety scores (GAD-7) between 1 and 6 and depression scores (PHQ-9) above 4.

CONCLUSION

FE vulnerability was associated with cognitive reappraisal and moderated by anxiety and depression. Emotion regulation interventions may reduce FE vulnerability, particularly among older adults with lower anxiety or higher depressive symptoms.