Decision-making Regret Characteristics And Formation Mechanism Study

Regret is commonly experienced by many people.Due to its profound impact and guiding effect on human behavior,regret theory has been applied to a variety of research topics.Characterized by high difficulty and complicated process,housing purchase decision has been used frequently as an illustration in the research of regret. Recent survey also indicated that regret was prevalent among Chinese house buyers. While the mainstream researches in this field focus on the factors that affect regret, little is known about how regret is shaped.This paper is an initial endeavor to fill this gap.From a perspective of housing purchase decision,we set out to explore the characteristics and mechanism of decision regret in five studies.First,to understand the mechanism of regret,how the regretful evaluation of outcomes is formed should be figured out.In study 1,a survey was conducted on the basis of nation-wide,large scale virtual communities related to regret.By 1106 messages relevant to housing purchase regret screened out from 623 estates in 23 cities,we proposed a multi-dimension construct of reference point that evokes homebuyers' regret.The results indicate that reference point consists of four dimensions,including expectation,better forgone alternatives,better decision timing and better purchase quantity decision.Second,in order to gain an insight into regret mechanism,the characteristics of regret,attribution and counterfactual thinking should be apprehended.By 32 interviews with house buyers from different regions belonging to different categories, study 2 clarified the structural dimensions of counterfactual thinking and regret. According to the decision content it involves,counterfactual thinking can be categorized as option and opportunity.On the other hand,it can also be categorized as inward counterfactual thinking and outward counterfactual thinking according to content features in mental simulation.Based on the characteristics of housing purchase regret,it can be classified into option regret and opportunity regret.It can also be classified into process unjustification regret and outcome discrepancy regret.It was found in study 2 that reference point of regret probably impact human judgment in an independent way rather than integrated way,because some house buyers experienced regret and satisfaction simultaneously.Study 3 was conducted to investigate the impact of a decision-maker's regulatory focus and decision strategy on mechanism of regret.The effect of regulatory focus or decision strategy on regret was not found when serious results were encountered.But the effect of regulatory fit on regret was demonstrated by case pattern matching method.Regulatory fit occurs when decision strategy sustains the decision maker's regulatory focus.When encountered by unfavorable results,people with regulatory fit feel more justification of their decisions and less regret than those without such fit. In study 4,we proposed and tested a mechanism model of decision regret,in which unfavorable evaluation of decision outcomes evokes regret via attribution and counterfactual thinking.Based on 1069 valid questionnaires collected from 10 cities, it was verified that regret consists of two dimensions:process unjustification and result discrepancy.The proposed mechanism of decision regret was supported,and two mediating effects of attribution and counterfactual thinking in the impact of decision outcomes evaluation on regret were also demonstrated.Moreover,decision task was found to moderate the effect of decision outcomes evaluation on regret.Study 4 also revealed that compared to individuals with promotion focus,those with prevention focus deem the decision results more unfavorably,generate more self-accusation and counterfactual thinking,and thus feel more regret.Moreover,it was found that with more conflict in joint decision and more non-negotiation in conflict settlement,decision makers will focus more on negative aspects of outcomes and consider the performance of houses more unsatisfactory.As a result,more self-accusation and counterfactual thinking is generated,and more regret is experienced.Study 5 was carried out to quantitatively examine the effects of regulatory fit on regret.Adopting quasi-experimental method,the interactive effect(regulatory fit) between regulatory focus and decision strategy on regret was demonstrated. Regulatory fit occurs when decision strategy sustains the decision maker's regulatory focus.When individuals with prevention focus make choices through reason-based strategy,or individuals with promotion focus make choices through feeling-based strategy,regulatory fit occurs.Moreover,under the situation of high conflict in group decision,if a decision maker with prevention focus settles the conflict by concession strategy,or a decision maker with promotion focus settles the conflict by competition strategy,regulatory fit also occurs.Compared to those without regulatory fit, individuals with such fit are less likely to experience counterfactual thinking and self-blame ,leading to lower degrees of regret.Thus the moderating effect of regulatory fit on the mechanism of regret was indicated.We concluded the major findings of the whole study.Theoretical progresses and its practical implications were discussed.Limitations and suggested possible directions for future research were also pointed out.