Self-Regulation in Ultimatum Bargaining: Controlling Emotion with Binding Goals

Abstract

Emotional reactions like anger can cause rejection of ultimatums at a cost to oneself. A possible ameliorating strategy is self-regulation: there is evidence that binding goals are an effective tool for controlling emotions and successful goal pursuit. The present study tests the hypothesis that entering an ultimatum with the goal of controlling one's own emotion will lead to more rational behavior, that is, acceptance of ultimatums that are unfair but that have positive value. The present study finds support for this hypothesis: participants with a goal to stay calm accepted ultimatums more than participants who were not given such a goal. The implications of self-regulation goals are discussed, and a current study, underway, is described that examines the impact of emotion regulation strategies and implementation intentions on ultimatum bargaining.