The DOI matches its Crossref record; 119 of the 124 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Too Much of a Good Thing? Trade-offs in Promotion and Prevention Focus
Abstract
Different kinds of motivational orientations provide distinctive ways of perceiving the world, dealing with life's inevitable slings and arrows, regulating challenges and opportunities, and creating success. In this chapter, we explore these differences in the two motivational systems outlined in regulatory focus theory: the promotion and prevention systems (Higgins, 1997). In particular, we discuss these systems in terms of the trade-offs in each; what are the benefits and costs of a strong promotion focus? What are the advantages and drawbacks of a strong prevention focus? We explore the trade-offs of each system with regard to three significant aspects of self-regulation and motivation: emotional experiences, the balance between commitment versus exploration, and performance. We conclude by discussing the importance of constraints on these systems for effective self-regulation and by suggesting avenues for future research.
Overview
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
In the citing paper
“Theorists suggest that social anxiety activates a prevention system where people pursue safety and avoid unwanted outcomes while also inhibiting a promotion system where people pursue rewards and strive toward the fulfillment of hopes and aspirations”
From Commitment to a purpose in life: An antidote to the suffering by individuals with social anxiety disorder. (2013) · cites this paper as Scholer & Higgins, 2012
Citations
Cites
Advances In Experimental Social Psychology
(2022) · Advances in experimental social psychology · doi:10.1016/s0065-2601(22)x0002-6 · Cited by 22,559
Attachment and Loss. Vol. 1. Attachment
Rever, G. W. (1972) · Psychosomatic Medicine · doi:10.1097/00006842-197211000-00011 · Cited by 8,446
(1999) · Cited by 7,995
Self-discrepancy: A theory relating self and affect.
Higgins, E. T. (1987) · Psychological Review · doi:10.1037/0033-295x.94.3.319 · Cited by 7,219
Self-citationHiggins, E. T. (1997) · American Psychologist · doi:10.1037/0003-066x.52.12.1280 · Cited by 6,775
Self-citationCognitive Therapy of Depression
HOLLON, S. D., & BECK, A. T. (1979) · Cognitive-Behavioral Interventions · doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-404480-7.50012-5 · Cited by 4,685
Making a good decision: Value from fit.
Higgins, E. T. (2000) · American Psychologist · doi:10.1037/0003-066x.55.11.1217 · Cited by 2,053
Self-citation(1973) · Cited by 2,004
Regulatory Focus and Strategic Inclinations: Promotion and Prevention in Decision-Making
Crowe, E., & Higgins, E. T. (1997) · Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes · doi:10.1006/obhd.1996.2675 · Cited by 1,990
Self-citationLockwood, P., Jordan, C. H., & Kunda, Z. (2002) · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology · doi:10.1037/0022-3514.83.4.854 · Cited by 1,749
Research works printed but not linked: 8
- Bohns,, 2011, When opposites fit: Increased relationship well-being from partner complementarity in regulatory focus.
- Choi,, 1999, The model of followers' responses to self-sacrificial leadership: An empirical test., The Leadership Quarterly
- Fulmer,, 2010, On “feeling right” in cultural contexts: How person-culture match affects self-esteem and subjective well-being., Psychological Science
- Higgins, E. T. (1999). Persons or situations: Unique explanatory principles or variability in general principles? In D. Cervone & Y. Shoda (Eds.), The coherence of personality: Social-cognitive bases of consistency, variability, and organization (pp. 61–93). New York: Guilford Press.
- Higgins,, 1992, Self-discrepancies and biographical memory: Personality and cognition at the level of psychological situation., Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin
- Idson,, 2000, How current feedback and chronic effectiveness influence motivation: Everything to gain versus everything to lose., European Journal of Social Psychology
- Jain,, 2007, For better of for worse? Valenced comparative frames and regulatory focus., Journal of Consumer Research
- Molden, D. C., & Higgins, E. T. (2005). Motivated thinking. In K. Holyoak and B. Morrison (Eds.), Handbook of thinking and reasoning (pp. 295–320). New York: Cambridge University Press.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Koopman, J., Lanaj, K., & Scott, B. A. (2015) · Academy of Management Journal · doi:10.5465/amj.2014.0262 · Cited by 637
The Role of Metamotivational Monitoring in Motivation Regulation
Miele, D. B., & Scholer, A. A. (2017) · Educational Psychologist · doi:10.1080/00461520.2017.1371601 · Cited by 241
Self-citationNew Directions in Self-Regulation: The Role of Metamotivational Beliefs
Scholer, A. A., Miele, D. B., Murayama, K., & Fujita, K. (2018) · Current Directions in Psychological Science · doi:10.1177/0963721418790549 · Cited by 190
Self-citationRegulatory Focus and Fit Effects in Organizations
Higgins, E. T., & Pinelli, F. (2020) · Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior · doi:10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-012119-045404 · Cited by 161
Self-citationBusiness model innovation and organizational resilience: towards an integrated conceptual framework
Buliga, O., Scheiner, C. W., & Voigt, K. (2015) · Journal of Business Economics · doi:10.1007/s11573-015-0796-y · Cited by 152
A self-regulatory approach to understanding boredom proneness
Struk, A. A., Scholer, A. A., & Danckert, J. A. (2015) · Cognition & Emotion · doi:10.1080/02699931.2015.1064363 · Cited by 112
Self-citationKashdan, T. B., & McKnight, P. E. (2013) · Emotion · doi:10.1037/a0033278 · Cited by 116
“Theorists have suggested that social anxiety activates a prevention system in which people pursue safety and avoid unwanted outcomes while also inhibiting a promotion system in which people pursue rewards and strive toward the fulfillment of hopes and aspirations (Scholer & Higgins, 2012).”
BackgroundHow performance (non-)contingent reward modulates cognitive control
Fröber, K., & Dreisbach, G. (2016) · Acta Psychologica · doi:10.1016/j.actpsy.2016.04.008 · Cited by 85
Identity processes and statuses in post‐Soviet Georgia: Exploration processes operate differently
Skhirtladze, N., Javakhishvili, N., Schwartz, S. J., Beyers, W., & Luyckx, K. (2015) · Journal of Adolescence · doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2015.08.006 · Cited by 79
Informational cascade, regulatory focus and purchase intention in online flash shopping
Zhu, P., Miao, C., Wang, Z., & Li, X. (2023) · Electronic Commerce Research and Applications · doi:10.1016/j.elerap.2023.101343 · Cited by 71
Deng, W., Lei, W., Guo, X., Li, X., Ge, W., & Hu, W. (2021) · Journal of Computer Assisted Learning · doi:10.1111/jcal.12642 · Cited by 59
Metamotivation: Emerging research on the regulation of motivational states
Miele, D. B., Scholer, A. A., & Fujita, K. (2020) · Advances in motivation science · doi:10.1016/bs.adms.2019.10.001 · Cited by 57
Self-citationKousina, E., & Voudouris, I. (2023) · Public Administration Review · doi:10.1111/puar.13650 · Cited by 62
The role of CEO regulatory focus in increasing or reducing corporate carbon emissions
Wagner, A., & Fischer-Kreer, D. (2023) · Business Strategy and the Environment · doi:10.1002/bse.3517 · Cited by 41
Rosenzweig, E. Q., & Miele, D. B. (2016) · Learning and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.lindif.2015.12.005 · Cited by 38
Mouratidis, A. A., Vansteenkiste, M., Lens, W., Michou, A., & Soenens, B. (2013) · Journal of Educational Psychology · doi:10.1037/a0032838 · Cited by 36
CEO regulatory focus and myopic marketing management
Chung, T. S., & Low, A. (2021) · International Journal of Research in Marketing · doi:10.1016/j.ijresmar.2021.09.004 · Cited by 29
Geographical indication labelling of food and behavioural intentions
Chen, N. (2021) · British Food Journal · doi:10.1108/bfj-06-2020-0552 · Cited by 23
Punctuated incongruity: A new approach to managing trade-offs between conformity and deviation
Patil, S. V., & Tetlock, P. E. (2014) · Research in Organizational Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.riob.2014.08.002 · Cited by 23
Barber, D., Peake, W. O., & Harris, M. L. (2022) · Journal of Small Business Management · doi:10.1080/00472778.2022.2141762 · Cited by 21
The metamotivation approach: Insights into the regulation of motivation and beyond
Fujita, K., Le, P. Q., Scholer, A. A., & Miele, D. B. (2024) · Social and Personality Psychology Compass · doi:10.1111/spc3.12937 · Cited by 23
Self-citationState-trait interactions in regulatory focus determine impulse buying behavior
Krishna, A., Ried, S., & Meixner, M. (2021) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0253634 · Cited by 18
Nguyen, T., Scholer, A. A., Miele, D. B., Edwards, M. C., & Fujita, K. (2022) · Social Psychological and Personality Science · doi:10.1177/19485506221090051 · Cited by 18
Self-citationPerceiving Relationship Success Through a Motivational Lens: A Regulatory Focus Perspective
Cortes, K., Scholer, A. A., Kohler, A., & Cavallo, J. V. (2018) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/0146167217747547 · Cited by 19
Self-citationNguyen, T., Togawa, T., Scholer, A. A., Miele, D. B., & Fujita, K. (2021) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/01461672211025423 · Cited by 15
Self-citationZhao, G., Xie, F., Luo, Y., Liu, Y., Yuan, C., Zhang, Q., & Wang, W. (2022) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.774148 · Cited by 15
Hernandez, I. A., Silverman, D. M., Rosario, R. J., & Destin, M. (2023) · Social Psychology of Education · doi:10.1007/s11218-023-09763-5 · Cited by 15
Motivation und Zielbindung mit Motto-Zielen im Coaching
Weber, J., & Storch, M. (2018) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-662-49483-7_44 · Cited by 14
Huang, H. (2017) · Taiwan journal of TESOL · Cited by 14
Coaching as a growth- or security-oriented process–How regulatory fit increases coaching success
Mühlberger, C., Böhm, A. M., Hansen, J., Behrendt, P., Wastian, M., & Jonas, E. (2023) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0286059 · Cited by 14
Self-regulatory correlates of spitefulness
Rodgers, C., & Dahling, J. J. (2017) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.paid.2017.11.020 · Cited by 13
A grounded theory exploration of undergraduate experiences of vicarious unemployment.
Thompson, M. N., Nitzarim, R. S., Her, P., & Dahling, J. J. (2013) · Journal of Counseling Psychology · doi:10.1037/a0033075 · Cited by 13
Need Support and Regulatory Focus in Responding to COVID-19
Vaughn, L. A., Garvey, C. A., & Chalachan, R. D. (2020) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2020.589446 · Cited by 11
Mühlberger, C., Endrejat, P. C., Möller, J., Herrmann, D., Kauffeld, S., & Jonas, E. (2022) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2022.807875 · Cited by 13
Metamotivation: Self-regulating task–motivation fit
Al‐Hoorie, A. H. (2024) · Porta Linguarum Revista Interuniversitaria de Didáctica de las Lenguas Extranjeras · doi:10.30827/portalin.viix.29880 · Cited by 11
Regulatory Focus and Academic Performance:
Toyama, M., Nagamine, M., Tang, L., MIWA, S., Kurozumi, R., & Aikawa, A. (2017) · The Japanese Journal of Educational Psychology · doi:10.5926/jjep.65.477 · Cited by 11
Poore, J., Forlines, C., Miller, S. M., Regan, J., & Irvine, J. M. (2014) · Journal of Cognitive Engineering and Decision Making · doi:10.1177/1555343414554702 · Cited by 14
Böhm, A. M., & Jonas, E. (2016) · Gruppe Interaktion Organisation Zeitschrift für Angewandte Organisationspsychologie (GIO) · doi:10.1007/s11612-016-0316-8 · Cited by 10
Economic status and avoidance motivation: a meta-analysis
Gilbert, K. M., Elliot, A. J., & Le, B. M. (2022) · Motivation and Emotion · doi:10.1007/s11031-022-09930-9 · Cited by 10
Can regulatory fit improve performance? Effect of types of regulatory fit and performance
Toyama, M., Nagamine, M., Tang, L., Miwa, S., Kurozumi, R., & Aikawa, A. (2017) · The Japanese journal of psychology · doi:10.4992/jjpsy.88.16321 · Cited by 9
Wachstums- und Sicherheitsorientierung im Coaching
Böhm, A. M., Mühlberger, C., & Jonas, E. (2018) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-662-49483-7_98 · Cited by 9
Hodis, F. A. (2018) · Educational Psychology Review · doi:10.1007/s10648-018-9439-5 · Cited by 7
Stigma, Health, and Individual Differences
Mendoza‐Denton, R., & Leitner, J. B. (2017) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190243470.013.20 · Cited by 7
Usage, Pleasure, Price, and Feeling: A Study on Shopping Orientation and Consumer Outcome
Zhao, S., Chen, P., Zhu, Y., Wei, F., & Liu, F. (2022) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2022.823890 · Cited by 8
Security motives and negative affective experiences during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic
Rodrigues, D. L., Zoppolat, G., Balzarini, R. N., & Slatcher, R. B. (2022) · Psychology and Health · doi:10.1080/08870446.2022.2067332 · Cited by 6
Jiraporn, N., Charinsarn, A. R., & Sheridan, M. (2016) · Management & Marketing · doi:10.1515/mmcks-2016-0006 · Cited by 7
Hu, X., Zhan, Y., Kim, S. K., Jimenez, W. P., & Yao, X. (2024) · Journal of Vocational Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.jvb.2024.104069 · Cited by 5
Wachstums- und Sicherheitsorientierung im Coaching
Böhm, A. M., Mühlberger, C., & Jonas, E. (2017) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-662-45119-9_98-1 · Cited by 5
Das Zürcher Ressourcen Modell. Gefühlsregulation und die Erzeugung von Sinn durch Motto-Ziele
Weber, J., & Storch, M. (2017) · Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht eBooks · doi:10.13109/9783666402883.359 · Cited by 1
Wegener, R., Deplazes, S., Hänseler, M., Künzli, H., Neumann, S., Ryter, A., Widulle, W., Ruprecht, V. &., & Olten, I. C. C. M. R. 2. (2018) · Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht eBooks · doi:10.13109/9783666402975 · Cited by 4
Motivation and Goal Setting with Motto-Goals in Coaching
Weber, J., & Storch, M. (2022) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-81938-5_52 · Cited by 3
Wu, H., Lalli, G. S., & Xia, Y. (2026) · The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher · doi:10.1007/s40299-026-01127-9 · Cited by 2
Hlaing, K. P., & Stapleton, A. (2021) · Accounting Perspectives · doi:10.1111/1911-3838.12287 · Cited by 2
Do prevention-focused orientations conserve cognitive resources?
Toyama, M., Tang, L., Nagamine, M., Miwa, S., & Aikawa, A. (2019) · The Japanese journal of psychology · doi:10.4992/jjpsy.90.17059 · Cited by 2
Miwa, S., Nagamine, M., Tang, L., Xiao, Y., & Toyama, M. (2022) · Psychological Reports · doi:10.1177/00332941211061073 · Cited by 2
Growth- and Security-Orientation in Coaching: Success through Motivational Fit
Böhm, A. M., Mühlberger, C., & Jonas, E. (2022) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-81938-5_33 · Cited by 2
Regulatory Focus and Task Performance:
Toyama, M., Tang, L., Nagamine, M., Kurozumi, R., Miwa, S., & Aikawa, A. (2018) · The Japanese Journal of Educational Psychology · doi:10.5926/jjep.66.287 · Cited by 2
The Role of Metamotivation in Managing the Motivation of Others: A Leadership Perspective
Jansen, E. (2019) · UWSpace (University of Waterloo) · Cited by 3
Forwards or backwards—regulatory focus orientation of offense and defense players in team sports
Kritzler, S., Best, A.-L., & Terwiel, S. (2022) · International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology · doi:10.1080/1612197x.2022.2084766 · Cited by 1
Systemic incongruity: Bringing down the risks of conformity and deviation biases
Patil, S. V. (2014) · ScholarlyCommons (University of Pennsylvania) · Cited by 1
Nishio, T., & Iijima, Y. (2022) · The Japanese Journal of Personality · doi:10.2132/personality.31.1.8 · Cited by 1
You say to-may-toe, I say to-mah-toe
Hoffman, B. H. (2015) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-800779-2.00006-3 · Cited by 2
Effects of regulatory fit on student engagement
Tang, L., Toyama, M., Nagamine, M., Kainuma, R., Miwa, S., & Aikawa, A. (2021) · The Japanese journal of psychology · doi:10.4992/jjpsy.92.20326 · Cited by 1
Motivation und Zielbindung mit Motto-Zielen im Coaching
Weber, J., & Storch, M. (2015) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-662-45119-9_44-1 · Cited by 1
Exploring the Relationship between Self-Regulation and Boredom
Struk, A. A. (2015) · UWSpace (University of Waterloo)
The Goal Fungibility Model: A Theoretical Account of Goal Persistence and Substitution After Failure
Hughes, J. (2013) · UWSpace (University of Waterloo)
The Primacy of Motivation in Preoperative Optimization
McAnally, H. B., & Darnall, B. D. (2019) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/med/9780190920142.003.0003
Schuster, B. H. (2016) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-662-48392-3_3 · Cited by 1
Chinese undergraduate students' motivation profiles: Identification and significance
Gao, J. (2019) · Open Access Victoria University of Wellington | Te Herenga Waka (Figshare) · doi:10.26686/wgtn.17142695
CREOBOTIC APPLICATION TO LEARNERS’ MOTIVATION AND PERFORMANCE
TEE, M. P. S. (2023) · International Journal of Research Publications · doi:10.47119/ijrp1001241520234905
A Neuroscience Perspective on Individual Differences in Organizations
Becker, W. J., Cechová, K., & Passarelli, A. M. (2024) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780192897114.013.16
Jonas, E., Braumandl, I., Mühlberger, C., & Zerle, G. (2024) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-658-42156-4_3
Linking Parents’ Achievement Worries to Children’s Felt Pressure and Poor Scholastic Performance
Ann-Kathrin, H., Miguel, K., & Julius, K. (2023) · Emerald Group Publishing Limited eBooks · doi:10.1108/979-8-88730-215-720251003
Selbstmotivierung durch Motto-Ziele nach dem Zürcher Ressourcen Modell
Weber, J., Storch, M., & Quirin, M. (2026) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-658-48449-1_21
An, J., Bonfrer, A., & Eckert, C. (2026) · Journal of Marketing Research · doi:10.1177/00222437261433457
Guan, C., Ding, Q., & Yu, Y. (2026) · Advances in computational intelligence and robotics book series · doi:10.4018/406048 · Cited by 1
Yan, J., Liu, J., & ZHANG, Z. (2026) · International Journal of Applied Linguistics · doi:10.1111/ijal.70286
Metadata
- Authors
- Scholer, A. A., & Higgins, E. T.
- Affiliations
- University of Waterloo (CA)
- Columbia University (US)
- Venue
- The Oxford Handbook of Human Motivation
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press
- Published
- 2012-09-18
- Pages
- 65-84
- OpenAlex
- W1956811933
- Cited by
- 78
- References
- 124
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 12 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 3 · 2019: 5 · 2018: 7 · 2017: 8 · 2016: 5 · 2015: 7 · 2014: 3 · 2013: 4
- FWCI
- 11.49
- Type
- book chapter
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Oxford University Press eBooks (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Behavioral Health and Interventions
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Human Behavior and Motivation
- Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › General Decision Sciences › Decision-Making and Behavioral Economics
- Keywords
- promotion focus, prevention focus, regulatory focus, motivational orientation, self-regulation, motivation, emotional experience, performance, trade-offs
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review