Remembering Affect Between Moments: Assessing Peak-End Effects In Continuous Affect Measures

In experience sampling studies, participants are intermittently measured with repeatedassessments, to track momentary affect changes. The data is collected in specific timeintervals, leaving information gaps between assessments. To capture affective changesbetween assessments, we developed a continuous measure where participantsretrospectively draw their affective trajectories. This approach, while potentially morecomplete, may be influenced by retrospective biases, such as the peak-end effect, whereintense or recent moments are remembered disproportionately. In an experience samplingstudy 115 participants rated their momentary positive and negative affect six times daily,drew affect changes between assessments, reported events, and completed one dailyhigh-intensity sampling session with up to six additional momentary ratings. We examinedthe divergence of the retrospective continuous affect drawings from the momentary affectand event ratings, respectively. Results showed that for positive affect, divergence betweendrawings and momentary or event ratings decreased with higher intensity. For negativeaffect, however, higher intensity increased the divergence, but this effect was moderated bythe recency of the momentary rating or event. Findings suggest that negative affect tendsto be reported differently in retrospective assessments compared to momentary evaluationsor event assessments. This divergence should be taken into account in future studies usingthis method.