individuals differ in their approach to the pursuit of positive goals and avoidance of negative goals.

regulatory focus theory offers one key to the understanding of these differences, its main thesis being that people in general, and by extension consumers in particular, are guided in their purchasing behavior by either promotion or prevention.

the former concerns the attainment of such positive personal outcomes as advancement and achievement, the latter the avoidance of negative outcomes relating to protection and security.

promotion focus ideals:促进集中式的 理想
prevention-focus oughts:防护集中式的 结果

个体为达到特定目标会努力改变或控制自己的思想、反应, 这一过程被称为自我调节(Geers, Weiland, Kosbab, Landry, & Helfer,2005)。调节定向理论区分了两种不同的自我调节方式或倾向—— 促进定向(promotion focus)和预防定向(prevention focus), 两者既可以受父母教养方式的影响, 表现为一种长期的人格特质; 也可以受情景因素引发而呈现暂时性。不同调节定向在引发因素(即, 输入变量)及产生的心理结果(即, 输出变量)方面存在显著差异。