IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jobhdp/v149y2018icp97-110.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The impact of doubt on the experience of regret

Author

Listed:
  • van de Calseyde, Philippe P.F.M.
  • Zeelenberg, Marcel
  • Evers, Ellen R.K.

Abstract

Decisions often produce considerable levels of doubt and regret, yet little is known about how these experiences are related. In six sets of studies (and two pilot-studies; total N = 2268), we consistently find that doubts arising after a decision (i.e., when people start questioning whether they made the correct decision) intensify regret via increased feelings of blame for having made a poor choice. These results are consistent with decision justification theory (Connolly & Zeelenberg, 2002) and regret regulation theory (Zeelenberg & Pieters, 2007), yet inconsistent with subjective expected pleasure theory (SEP; Mellers, Schwartz, & Ritov, 1999). That is, SEP would have predicted less regret as those who already doubted their decision should be less surprised when learning that their decision indeed could have been better (as compared to those who were certain that they made the correct decision). We find mixed results for the effect of post-decisional doubt on the experience of relief and no support for a relationship between a person’s degree of doubt before a decision and the intensity of regret. Implications and future directions are discussed.

Suggested Citation

  • van de Calseyde, Philippe P.F.M. & Zeelenberg, Marcel & Evers, Ellen R.K., 2018. "The impact of doubt on the experience of regret," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 97-110.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jobhdp:v:149:y:2018:i:c:p:97-110
    DOI: 10.1016/j.obhdp.2018.08.006
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0749597817300869
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.obhdp.2018.08.006?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Inman, J Jeffrey & Zeelenberg, Marcel, 2002. "Regret in Repeat Purchase versus Switching Decisions: The Attenuating Role of Decision Justifiability," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 29(1), pages 116-128, June.
    2. Zeelenberg, M. & van Dijk, W.W. & Manstead, J., 1998. "Reconsidering the relation between regret and responsibility," Discussion Paper 1998-36, Tilburg University, Center for Economic Research.
    3. David E. Bell, 1982. "Regret in Decision Making under Uncertainty," Operations Research, INFORMS, vol. 30(5), pages 961-981, October.
    4. David E. Bell, 1983. "Risk Premiums for Decision Regret," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 29(10), pages 1156-1166, October.
    5. Ku, Gillian, 2008. "Learning to de-escalate: The effects of regret in escalation of commitment," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 105(2), pages 221-232, March.
    6. Zeelenberg, M. & van Dijk, W.W. & Manstead, A.S.R., 1998. "Reconsidering the relation between regret and responsibility," Other publications TiSEM fa17bcac-aab0-4f37-8183-5, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    7. Pieters, Rik & Zeelenberg, Marcel, 2005. "On bad decisions and deciding badly: When intention-behavior inconsistency is regrettable," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 97(1), pages 18-30, May.
    8. Larrick, Richard P. & Boles, Terry L., 1995. "Avoiding Regret in Decisions with Feedback: A Negotiation Example," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 63(1), pages 87-97, July.
    9. Ritov, Ilana & Baron, Jonathan, 1995. "Outcome Knowledge, Regret, and Omission Bias," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 64(2), pages 119-127, November.
    10. Loomes, Graham & Sugden, Robert, 1982. "Regret Theory: An Alternative Theory of Rational Choice under Uncertainty," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 92(368), pages 805-824, December.
    11. Heath, Chip & Gonzalez, Rich, 1995. "Interaction with Others Increases Decision Confidence but Not Decision Quality: Evidence against Information Collection Views of Interactive Decision Making," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 61(3), pages 305-326, March.
    12. Ritov, Ilana, 1996. "Probability of Regret: Anticipation of Uncertainty Resolution in Choice," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 66(2), pages 228-236, May.
    13. Sniezek, Janet A. & Van Swol, Lyn M., 2001. "Trust, Confidence, and Expertise in a Judge-Advisor System," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 84(2), pages 288-307, March.
    14. Zeelenberg, Marcel & Pieters, Rik, 2004. "Consequences of regret aversion in real life: The case of the Dutch postcode lottery," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 93(2), pages 155-168, March.
    15. van Dijk, Eric & Zeelenberg, Marcel, 2005. "On the psychology of `if only': Regret and the comparison between factual and counterfactual outcomes," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 97(2), pages 152-160, July.
    16. Stadtler, Hartmut, 2005. "Supply chain management and advanced planning--basics, overview and challenges," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 163(3), pages 575-588, June.
    17. Zeelenberg, Marcel & Beattie, Jane & van der Pligt, Joop & de Vries, Nanne K., 1996. "Consequences of Regret Aversion: Effects of Expected Feedback on Risky Decision Making," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 65(2), pages 148-158, February.
    18. Zeelenberg, M. & van Dijk, W.W. & Manstead, J., 1998. "Reconsidering the relation between regret and responsibility," Other publications TiSEM 371e7dc6-a667-468e-bb94-5, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    19. repec:cup:judgdm:v:7:y:2012:i:4:p:441-451 is not listed on IDEAS
    20. repec:cup:judgdm:v:5:y:2010:i:5:p:411-419 is not listed on IDEAS
    21. Inman, J.J. & Zeelenberg, M., 2002. "Regret in repeat purchase versus switching decisions : The attenuating role of decision justifiability," Other publications TiSEM 44060120-bd30-40e0-a97f-f, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    22. Boles, Terry L. & Messick, David M., 1995. "A Reverse Outcome Bias: The Influence of Multiple Reference Points on the Evaluation of Outcomes and Decisions," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 61(3), pages 262-275, March.
    23. Iris Bohnet & Fiona Greig & Benedikt Herrmann & Richard Zeckhauser, 2008. "Betrayal Aversion: Evidence from Brazil, China, Oman, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United States," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 98(1), pages 294-310, March.
    24. Zeelenberg, Marcel & van Dijk, Wilco W. & Manstead, Antony S. R., 1998. "Reconsidering the Relation between Regret and Responsibility," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 74(3), pages 254-272, June.
    25. Lin, Chien-Huang & Huang, Wen-Hsien & Zeelenberg, Marcel, 2006. "Multiple reference points in investor regret," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 27(6), pages 781-792, December.
    26. Zeelenberg, M. & Pieters, R., 2004. "Consequences of regret aversion in real life : The case of the Dutch postcode lottery," Other publications TiSEM d16cb90a-f96c-4fce-b4c7-4, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    27. Berg Joyce & Dickhaut John & McCabe Kevin, 1995. "Trust, Reciprocity, and Social History," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 10(1), pages 122-142, July.
    28. Zeelenberg, M. & van Dijk, E. & van den Bos, K. & Pieters, R., 2002. "The inaction effect in the psychology of regret," Other publications TiSEM a29106c0-2319-4f60-b213-8, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Tony de Vassoigne & Przemek Sobocinski, 2023. "Gambler's motivations and regret: the case of online sports betting among 18-30-yearolds [Les motivations du parieur et le regret : le cas des paris sportifs en ligne chez les 18 - 30 ans]," Post-Print hal-04190274, HAL.
    2. Moreau, C. Page, 2020. "Brand Building on the Doorstep: The Importance of the First (Physical) Impression," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 96(1), pages 155-167.
    3. Jian Ming Luo & Chi Fung Lam & Hongyu Wang, 2021. "Exploring the Relationship Between Hedonism, Tourist Experience, and Revisit Intention in Entertainment Destination," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(4), pages 21582440211, October.
    4. Khanin, Dmitry & Turel, Ofir & Mahto, Raj V. & Liguori, Eric W., 2021. "Betting on the wrong horse: The antecedents and outcomes of entrepreneur’s opportunity regret," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 40-48.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. George, Jennifer M. & Dane, Erik, 2016. "Affect, emotion, and decision making," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 136(C), pages 47-55.
    2. Zeelenberg, Marcel & van Dijk, Wilco W. & van der Pligt, Joop & Manstead, Antony S. R. & van Empelen, Pepijn & Reinderman, Dimitri, 1998. "Emotional Reactions to the Outcomes of Decisions: The Role of Counterfactual Thought in the Experience of Regret and Disappointment," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 75(2), pages 117-141, August.
    3. Ku, Gillian, 2008. "Learning to de-escalate: The effects of regret in escalation of commitment," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 105(2), pages 221-232, March.
    4. Reb, Jochen, 2008. "Regret aversion and decision process quality: Effects of regret salience on decision process carefulness," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 105(2), pages 169-182, March.
    5. Hoelzl, Erik & Loewenstein, George, 2005. "Wearing out your shoes to prevent someone else from stepping into them: Anticipated regret and social takeover in sequential decisions," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 98(1), pages 15-27, September.
    6. Shih, Eric & Schau, Hope Jensen, 2011. "To Justify or Not to Justify: The Role of Anticipated Regret on Consumers’ Decisions to Upgrade Technological Innovations," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 87(2), pages 242-251.
    7. Zeelenberg, Marcel & Pieters, Rik, 2004. "Consequences of regret aversion in real life: The case of the Dutch postcode lottery," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 93(2), pages 155-168, March.
    8. Erik Hoelzl & Luise Hahn & Maria Pollai & Jan Masak, 2013. "The Effect of Feedback on Process and Outcome of Loan Negotiations: Consequences on Risk Aversion and the Willingness to Compromise," Group Decision and Negotiation, Springer, vol. 22(3), pages 541-559, May.
    9. van de Ven, Niels & Zeelenberg, Marcel, 2011. "Regret aversion and the reluctance to exchange lottery tickets," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 32(1), pages 194-200, February.
    10. Humphrey, Steven J., 2004. "Feedback-conditional regret theory and testing regret-aversion in risky choice," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 25(6), pages 839-857, December.
    11. Zeelenberg, Marcel & van Dijk, Wilco W. & Manstead, Antony S. R., 2000. "Regret and Responsibility Resolved? Evaluating Ordonez and Connolly's (2000) Conclusions," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 81(1), pages 143-154, January.
    12. Krähmer, Daniel & Stone, Rebecca, 2005. "Regret in Dynamic Decision Problems," Discussion Paper Series of SFB/TR 15 Governance and the Efficiency of Economic Systems 71, Free University of Berlin, Humboldt University of Berlin, University of Bonn, University of Mannheim, University of Munich.
    13. Sugden, Robert & Wang, Mengjie & Zizzo, Daniel John, 2019. "Take it or leave it: Experimental evidence on the effect of time-limited offers on consumer behaviour," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 168(C), pages 1-23.
    14. van Dijk, Eric & Zeelenberg, Marcel, 2005. "On the psychology of `if only': Regret and the comparison between factual and counterfactual outcomes," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 97(2), pages 152-160, July.
    15. Giorgetta, Cinzia & Zeelenberg, Marcel & Ferlazzo, Fabio & D’Olimpio, Francesca, 2012. "Cultural variation in the role of responsibility in regret and disappointment: The Italian case," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 726-737.
    16. Zeelenberg, M. & van Dijk, E. & van den Bos, K. & Pieters, R., 2002. "The inaction effect in the psychology of regret," Other publications TiSEM a29106c0-2319-4f60-b213-8, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    17. Summers, Barbara & Duxbury, Darren, 2012. "Decision-dependent emotions and behavioral anomalies," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 118(2), pages 226-238.
    18. Mark Heitmann & Andreas Herrmann & Christian Kaiser, 2007. "The effect of product variety on purchase probability," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 1(2), pages 111-131, August.
    19. Zeelenberg, M. & van Dijk, W.W. & van der Pligt, J. & Manstead, A.S.R. & van Empelen, P. & Reinderman, D., 1998. "Emotional reactions to the outcomes of decision : The role of counterfactual thought in the experience of regret," Other publications TiSEM eafc28f9-18d6-4b76-b70f-3, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    20. Zeelenberg, Marcel & Beattie, Jane, 1997. "Consequences of Regret Aversion 2: Additional Evidence for Effects of Feedback on Decision Making," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 72(1), pages 63-78, October.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jobhdp:v:149:y:2018:i:c:p:97-110. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/obhdp .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.