The influence of people’s regulatory focus in their predictions of others: First indicators of egocentrism

The current research investigated whether in their predictions of others people egocentrically rely on their motivational orientation in terms of a promotion focus on achievement and growth versus a prevention focus on safety and security (i.e., their regulatory focus; Higgins, 1997, 1998). In Exp. 1 participants’ regulatory focus predicted estimations of a social target’s strategic promotion versus prevention inclinations. In Exp. 2, regulatory focus impacted on participants’ predictions of a targets’ choice when faced with enriched (fitting promotion) versus impoverished (fitting prevention) options. Two further experiments demonstrated boundary conditions. Participants in Exp. 3 only relied on their regulatory focus if doing so did not run counter stereotypic beliefs. In Exp. 4 participants only relied on their regulatory focus in making promotion versus prevention products preference-predictions when they did not have particularistic target knowledge. Regulatory focus was measured (Exp. 1) and manipulated (Exp. 2-4) and across studies effects were not mediated by mood, judgment certainty, perceived task-enjoyment or -difficulty. Implications of these findings for research on social projection and interpersonal consequences are delineated