The article presents a detailed analysis of Regulatory Focus Theory. Its summary helps in the understanding of the theory’s concepts and possible application. The theory addresses ways in which people attempt the achievement of the presence of positive outcomes, and an absence of negative outcomes; the processes are promotion and prevention respectively. It shows people may exhibit differences in their chronic orientations. The article explores the regulatory perspective in reference to a multilayered model of personality (Manczak, Zapata-Gietl & McAdams, 169).
It arranges human behavior into domains such as; romantic relationships, economics, parenting and psychopathology. The study analyzes the promotion and prevention concepts based on an integrative personality model. The selected model shows the expression of personality across three major layers; characteristic adaptations, dispositional traits and integrative life stories.
Dispositional traits are those included in the Big Five framework such as; neuroticism, openness to experience, and extraversion. Dispositional traits form a foundation for personality and manifest through; thought, feeling and behavior; this is a social factor. The taxonomy commonly uses the Big Five traits of; agreeableness, openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, and neuroticism (171).
Characteristic adaptations, on the other hand, represent a person’s values and goals; this is the second layer; it sees a person as a motivated agent. It focuses on characteristic values, goals and adaptations showing what a person wants and does not want in life. It also shows their efforts in achieving the desires and avoiding the unwanted things; their actions are influenced by contextual periods of development and social roles. For instance, characteristic adaptations are easily influenced by factors such as; peers, family, school, neighborhood and the overall community (171).
Integrative life stories depict the narrative identity. The third layer in personality model shows how a person is an autobiographical author of self. It occurs through the composition of internal narratives; this begins at adolescence or early adulthood. The narrative focuses on an understanding of the past and what is to occur in the future (171). A person’s narrative identity shows efforts in unifying the self; past, present and future. It is influenced by the first two levels, of dispositional traits and characteristics goals and values, in the personality model. The content and structure of narrative identities relies heavily on; cultural images, metaphors and narratives.
The study uses the avoidance approach; people’s actions are influenced by their desire to reduce pain and increase pleasure (172). The two goals are pursued differently. Promotion, an increase in pleasure, motivation aims at opportunities for reward and avoiding the absence of reward. For example, a person may work hard so one day they can get the dream career. Prevention, on the other hand, focuses on opportunities for the removal of negative outcomes. For instance, a person may work hard to escape the challenges of poverty in his/her life. Hypothetically, both prevention and promotion orientations operate as chronic and situational motivations; thus, the desire to pursue either goals may be caused by environmental demands or a stable and persistent preference within the person (170).
The study focuses on an examination of the connection between personality psychology and regulatory focus theory. It occurs through the use of a multilayered personality mode in the exploration of prevention and promotion orientations. The selected integrative model explores; life goals, dispositional traits and life stories. It provides comprehensive quantitative and qualitative results; first and foremost, the results reveal that promotion and prevention ideas are coherent across the three personality layers. Subsequently, an emphasis on promotion is often associated with both physical and psychological wellbeing; this is particularly in reference to life narratives and traits.
In the study, there was an assessment of the relative salience of promotion and prevention themes in life stories. The coding system used revealed that participants whose narratives focused on opportunities in the environment and personal growth (a promotion perspective) had high levels of traits such as extraversion and openness to experience. Those who focused on efforts to avoid harm (a preventive perspective) had high levels of neuroticism.
Subsequently, a focus on personal goals revealed that people with promotion-oriented life goals told promotion-related stories, whereas, those with prevention-oriented life goals told prevention-related stories. The findings reveal that a review of past experiences can convey episodic personality features. Neuroticism cases mostly associate with preventive goals, whereas, openness to experience and extraversion associate with promotion-oriented goals.
Overall findings of the study help in understanding how personality traits relate to the promotion and prevention processes. They show that a person’s chronic orientation to promotion or prevention is an organizing force for personality; this occurs through evidence in the layers of multilayered model of personality (177). Prevention focus is evident through low score in openness to experience and extraversion; it has high scores in neuroticism (178). Promotion depicts low scores in neuroticism and high scores in openness to experience and extraversion. The study also shows that people who focus on opportunities and self-growth exhibit better psychological and physical wellbeing. It reveals the fundamental role of regulatory focus theory in the organization of human behavior. It incorporates diverse approaches in the study of psychological experiences people have, while, allowing an understanding of personality coherence (179).
Application
The article depicts an analysis of the regulatory perspective in reference to the multilayered model of personality. Through the use of narrative identity concept, it can help in the investigation of how narrative themes of promotion and prevention relate with narrative focus; this helps in the understanding of characteristics goals and dispositional traits. It helps psychologists in determining the extent of the contribution of each layer of personality to a person’s physical health and psychological wellbeing.
It is a significant step in the understanding of psychological development and related factors, in a person’s life. It occurs through the establishment of a connection between personal goals, dispositional traits and life narratives, in regard to prevention and promotion.
The regulatory focus provides a foundation that can be used in measuring the quality of life in various people. It can then help in identifying and dealing with challenges impeding the achievement of high quality living. It occurs through the use of self-report measures of physical health and psychological wellbeing (174). The report focuses on; depression symptoms, positive psychological health and physical health (175).
The three layers of personality, in the study, can be used in determining individuals’ personality traits. Through the incorporation of the Big Five traits, the life stories people tell can help in determining their personality traits; this occurs in reference to promotion and prevention (177).
The study is a major step in the organization and understanding of human behavior. It presents an alternative approach; this occurs through the use of promotion and prevention themes and integration of multiple personality dimensions. It is efficient in the analysis of regulatory focus on a multilayered personality perspective. It is an integrative and broad way of organizing human motivations and behavior (180). It establishes a connection between varied personality and social psychology research perspectives; this provides an improved understanding of personality and chronic regulatory outlooks.
Works Cited
Manczak, Erika, M., Zapata-Gietl, Claudia, and McAdams, Dan. ‘Regulatory Focus in the Life Story: Prevention and Promotion as Expressed in Three Layers of Personality.’ Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Volume 106. No. 1 (2004): Pages 169-181. Print.
