Differences in the cognitive accessibility of action and inaction regrets

Abstract

This paper investigates the temporal pattern of experienced regret and provides insight into the underlying factors leading to differential cognitive accessibility of actions and inactions over time. Across three studies, we find increased cognitive accessibility of inactions in the long term with no difference in the accessibility of actions and inactions in the short term. We find support for the depth of impact, breadth of impact, and frequency of thought as explanations for this differential accessibility.