What We Regret Most Are Lost Opportunities: A Theory of Regret Intensity

Abstract

A recent theory (Roese & Summerville, 2005) has suggested that regret is intensified by perceptions of future opportunity. In this work, however, it is proposed that feelings of regret are more likely elicited by perceptions of lost opportunity: People regret outcomes that could have been changed in the past but can no longer be changed and for which people experience low psychological closure. Consistent with the lost opportunity principle, Study 1 revealed that regretted experiences in the most commonly regretted life domains are perceived as offering the least opportunity for improvement in the future, Study 2 indicated that people experience the most regret for outcomes that are not repeatable, and Study 3 revealed that perceptions of higher past than future opportunities and low psychological closure predict regret intensity. Discussion focuses on the hope-inducing yet ephemeral nature of perceived future opportunity and on the relationship between dissonance reduction and closure.

Regret as autobiographical memory

“…In the younger group, regret intensity was not strongly associated with wellbeing. These results were replicated in a second study, which also showed that among older adults, having future goals reliably predicted reduced levels of regret intensity and higher levels of life satisfaction, which as Beike, Markman and Karadogan (2009) point out, is at odds with Roese and Summerville"s (2005) opportunity principle. Stewart and Vanderwater (1999) showed that regret-inspired life changes also bring contentment.…”

“…Beike, Markman and Karadogan (2009) challenge the basic premise of the opportunity principle and argue that regret stems not from realising that an opportunity is still viable, but from recognising that it is irredeemably lost. They point to the fact that education, the most regretted life domain in Roese and Summerville"s (2005) meta-analysis, would not represent a source of future opportunity for many of the participants surveyed, some of whom were elderly adults.…”

“…offered the most comprehensive explanation for the first observation by providing evidence of cognitive and motivational factors that operate over time to dampen the effects of action regrets whilst at the same time making inaction regrets more troublesome and memorable. With regard to the second observation, Roese and Summerville (2005) suggested that regret is most prevalent in those life domains that offer opportunities for future corrective action, whereas Beike et al (2009) argue the opposite, that regret arises from recognising that future opportunities to redeem regrets are no longer possible. The conclusion derived from the studies reported in the thesis is that a more integrated account of these two findings can be offered by models of autobiographical memory, which suggest that both observations might be mediated, at least in part, by the interaction between event structure and the life script.…”

Locomotion (Empowering) and Assessment (Disempowering) Self-Regulatory Dimensions as a Function of Affective Profile in High School Students

“…According to this notion, adolescents expressing high levels of PA may experience 'action-orientation', movement forward and attainment/ achievement thereby operating with "locomotion" orientation. Beike et al [50] have shown that the tendency to regret actions is to a large extent a 'non-action whereas actions, 'in the long run', provide more positive feelings than passivity. As a self-regulatory strategy, high levels of "locomotion", based on coping behavior rather than inaction, may have contribute to elevated PA in adolescents.…”

“…Robinson et al [52] have postulated that NA functions as a 'defense' mechanism by either provoking a passive state wherein watchfulness and reticence are prioritized or, alternatively, that individuals applying high levels of "assessment" invest more effort on ruminating prior to choice and these deliberations induce worry and other feelings linked to NA. Individuals identified through behavioral inaction tend to express more regret [53] and experience a higher degree of NA [54] through inaction than if they had attempted, even persisted, towards a goal [50,55]. Excessive hesitancy may accompany the pursuance of an "assessment" approach to choice and decision-making leading to inaction and reducing the quality of preferences and decisions [56].…”