The Impact of Perceived Self-Efficacy on Regret

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to shed light on the relationship between perceived self-efficacy and regret. I measured regret by its two subcomponents, cognitive regret and affective regret . I hypothesized first that as perceived self-efficacy increases, so too would the experience of cognitive regret. Second, I predicted that as perceived self-efficacy decreases, the experience of affective regret would increase. I expected that people with more perceived self-efficacy, believing themselves more capable globally, would be more likely to reflect on and learn from their mistakes. In contrast, I thought people with less perceived self-efficacy would tend to focus on the emotional distress that accompanies regret, feeling less able to have modified their past decisions. However, my hypotheses were not supported by the data. Although my predictions were not supported, the goal of promoting the most functional regret experience possible remains. Future research could establish a causal relationship between perceived self-efficacy, both general and specific, and regret.