PERCEIVED SELF-REGULATION AND INDIVIDUAL-DIFFERENCES IN SELECTIVE ATTENTION

Based on R. G. Lord and P. E. Levy (1994), this study investigated the roles of conscious and unconscious suppression processes in self-regu lation. As hypothesized, both action-state orientation (reflecting con scious suppression processes) and negative priming (reflecting unconsc ious suppression processes) had significant positive relationships wit h perceived self-regulatory success across multiple life domains. The results suggest that individuals who can effectively initiate action t oward goals (action-oriented) and better block out non-goal-relevant i nformation (high negative priming) have higher levels of perceived sel f-regulatory success. Findings are discussed in terms of self-regulati on at both conscious and unconscious levels with implications for ever yday goal-directed behavior and motivational research.