Letting go of regrets in old age makes you happier

Is having regrets a bad thing? Well, according to new research, it entirely depends on your age.
The new study shows that regretting past mistakes may help young people make better decisions in the future, but for older people, emotional health means not dwelling on things you can’t change.

The research, published in Science, shows that a philosophy of ‘no regrets’ and letting go of regrets in old age is the best to follow.

Scientists compared the brains of 21 healthy young people, 20 individuals who had developed depression after age 55 (who were in their 60s in the time of the study), as well as 20 healthy senior citizens.

Participants were scanned while playing a videogame which involved opening a series of eight boxes, containing either ‘gold’, which had a monetary value, or a picture of a devil, which meant they lost all the winnings they had accumulated.

Players could chose to stop and collect the winnings they had amassed at any point. This produced an opportunity for regret, despite the fact that the game was about luck rather than skill.

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The more participants failed to collect the full amount, the more risks they tended to take in during their next attempt - a change in the participant’s behaviour which attempted to minimise regret in the future.

However, this effect was only seen in the young and depressed elderly – healthy older people were more likely to dismiss regret and not let it affect future decisions.

When players missed a chance of a big win, healthy elderly participants showed an increase in brain activity associated with emotional control. Authors believe this shows that in order for healthy older minds to regulate their sense of regret, they tell themselves the results are “determined by factors they can’t influence", but depressed elderly blame themselves for the outcome.

The authors of the study concluded: “Disengagement from regret experiences at a point of life where the opportunities to undo regrettable behavior are limited may be a protective strategy to maintain emotional well-being.”

Essentially, in our youth, we may harness regret to make better decisions in the future. But when we’re older – and the possibility for second chances diminishes – feeling regretful doesn’t do as much good.

Furthermore, teaching older people to dismiss regret could help prevent or potentially treat their depression.