When doing what feels right turns out poorly: Regulatory fit and emotional responses to bad outcomes
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Abstract
The behaviors people choose can sometimes lead to poor outcomes. Regulatory focus theory holds that the emotions people feel in response to poor outcomes differ based on the regulatory focus with which people approach their goals (Higgins, 1996). Promotion focus elicits dejection; prevention focus elicits agitation. Research on regulatory fit has shown that consistency between one’s behavior and regulatory focus attenuates negative feelings when people transgress against others (Camacho et al., 2003). Thus, having regulatory fit implies that people are behaving in a manner that feels right to them. We proposed that regulatory fit would selectively ease the discrete negative emotions people feel in response to poor outcomes. We hypothesized that people high in promotion focus would feel less dejected when their outcomes were the result of an action than those lower in promotion focus, and people high in prevention focused would feel less agitated when their outcomes were the result of an inaction than those lower in prevention focus. We further suggested that, even in response to poor outcomes, because people were doing what feels right to them, regulatory fit would elicit the positive emotions of pride and wistfulness. In the first of two studies, we measured regulatory focus and had people write about an action or inaction that led to a poor outcome. In Study 2, we manipulated both regulatory focus and whether people wrote about an action or inaction. Neither study yielded results to support our hypotheses. Potential explanations for why no effects were found are discussed.