Research article summary (published 30 Jul 2009):

Choosing to be afraid: preferences for fear as a function of goal pursuit.

Full Abstract

According to an instrumental approach to emotion regulation (M. Tamir, in press), people may not always prefer to feel pleasant emotions and avoid unpleasant ones. Instead, they may be motivated to experience even unpleasant emotions when they might be useful for goal attainment. Given that fear serves to promote successful avoidance, these studies tested this hypothesis by examining preferences for fear in preparation for avoidance goal pursuits. Consistent with the predictions of the instrumental approach, participants preferred to increase their level of fear as they prepared to pursue an avoidance goal. Such preferences were higher than preferences for either excitement or anger and were unique to avoidance (vs. approach or confrontational) goal pursuits. Given the aversive nature of fear, these findings clearly demonstrate that people may sometimes prefer to feel bad if doing so can lead to instrumental benefits. 2009 APA, all rights reserved.

Author information

Author/s: Tamir, Maya (M); Ford, Brett Q (BQ);

Affiliation: Department of Psychology, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467, USA. tamirm(-atsign-)bc.edu

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article

Journal: Emotion (Washington, D.C.) (Emotion), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2009-Aug; vol 9 (issue 4) : pp 488-97

Dates: Created 2009/08/05; Completed 2009/09/28;

PMID: 19653771, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 9/28/2009, IMS Date: )

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Adolescent Anger Arousal Association Avoidance Learning Choice Behavior Conditioning, Operant Fear Female

Female Goals Humans Male Mental Recall Motivation Music Video Games Young Adult

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