1. SAMPLE DESCRIPTION and METHODS
Let’s Talk About Self-Regulation: Linguistic Measures of Reward and Risk Sensitivity Predict Behavior
Seung Joo Yang Ryan L. Boyd
University of Texas at Austin
ABSTRACT
SAMPLE DESCRIPTION and METHODS
RESULTS (Cont.)
DISCUSSION
Regulatory focus theory proposes that two different orientations – promotion and prevention – regulate how we successfully attain goals. In this study, we sought to connect natural language and a person’s self-regulatory traits. The use of language was predictive of congruent self-regulatory traits and a tendency to engage in social behaviors. Language-based measures can be a relatively new approach to study promotion or prevention-focused traits.
Natural language reveals a lot about the person. Examining a person’s natural language can be used to measure a person’s regulatory focus and focus-congruent behaviors. Our results suggest that the strongest link between language and a person’s regulatory focus involves behaviors that are relevant to engaging in social behaviors.
Through this study, reward-related language and risk-related language were found to be sound predictors of a person’s promotion/prevention focuses. The language-based measures can be a useful approach to study a person’s self-regulatory traits.
An online sample of Amazon mTurk participants (N = 767) generated open-ended writings about important factors in their lives. Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC2015) was used to analyze participant language – we focused exclusively on the new risk and reward categories. The LIWC application measures the percentage of words belonging to each category in participant writing, representing the degree to which an individual shows a predisposition to each type of regulatory focus.
Participants also completed a large battery of questions about the frequency of their own typical behaviors, such as maintaining personal hygiene and shopping.
Reward-related
Met with work-related people (0.13)
Took a bath (0.10)
Took some time
to relax (-0.13)
Talked on the phone with a friend for more than 10 minutes (0.083)
INTRODUCTION
When someone is motivated to attain a goal, they are typically guided by one of two different orientations that regulate their behaviors: promotion and prevention. Individuals with a dominant promotion focus tend to adopt a strategy of focusing on accomplishments and aspirations (gains), while individuals with a more dominant prevention focus adopt strategies that focus on safety and responsibilities (non-losses; e.g., Higgins, 1997; Higgins et al., 2001).
While it is well established that one’s regulatory focus is impactful of specific behaviors, it is less clear how this dimension of thought impacts general verbal behaviors. In the current study, we seek to validate new language-based measures of regulatory focus using behavioral outcomes. It is hypothesized that higher use of promotion-oriented language will be predictive of approach-related behaviors, whereas prevention-oriented language will be predictive of avoidant tendencies.
Listened to music (-0.1)
Left a message for someone (0.082)
REFERENCES
Boyd, R. L., & Pennebaker, J. W. (2015). A way with words: Using language for psychological science in the modern era. In C. Dimofte, C. Haugtvedt, & R. Yalch (Eds.), Consumer psychology in a social media world ( ). New York City, NY, US: Routledge Publishers
Higgins, E. T. (1997). Beyond pleasure and pain. American psychologist, 52(12), 1280.
Higgins, E. T., Friedman, R. S., Harlow, R. E., Idson, L. C., Ayduk, O. N., & Taylor, A. (2001). Achievement orientations from subjective histories of success: Promotion pride versus prevention pride. European Journal of Social Psychology, 31(1), 3-23.
Pennebaker, J. W., Boyd, R. L., Jordan, K., & Blackburn, K. (2015). The development and psychometric properties of LIWC2015. UT Faculty/Researcher Works.
Tausczik, Y. R., & Pennebaker, J. W. (2010). The psychological meaning of words: LIWC and computerized text analysis methods. Journal Of Language And Social Psychology, 29(1), 24-54
Did exterior repairs (0.07)
Spent time
working on a hobby (-0.09)
Went to a museum,
art gallery, or exhibition (0.07)
MORE
LESS
Checked the weather (-0.07)
Called a family member (-0.07)
(Pennebaker et al., 2015)
Left a message for someone (0.07)
Worked out in a gym (-0.08)
RESULTS
Went to an alternative
health care provider (-0.08)
Using R, the LIWC measures of risk and reward sensitivity were modeled against objective behavioral reports. The correlation test was used to determine if language-based measures were predictive of certain regulatory behaviors.
Results show that reward-related language is a sound predictor of promotion-relevant behaviors, while risk-related language is predictive of engaging in inhibitory behaviors. Results also found that individuals with a strong promotion focus are more inclined to engage in social behaviors than prevention focused individuals.
Wrote a
handwritten letter (0.08)
Went out to eat
(other than fast food) (-0.08)
Went to a
religious service (-0.09)
Bought new clothes (-0.1)
CONTACT INFORMATION
For further information about this study please contact Seung Joo (S.J.) Yang:
Risk-related