Importance Of Self Regulation

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Self-Regulation Self-regulation is a theory of human behavior involving cognitive, affective, motivational, and behavioral components and it refers to self generated thoughts, feelings and actions that are planned and cyclically adapted to the attainment of personal goals (Boekaerts, Pintrich & Zeidner, 2005). Self-regulation is a continuing process that occurs both consciously and unconsciously that affect the ability to control responses (Strauman, Kolden, Stromquist, Davis, Kwapil, Heerey & Schneider, 2001). It is a skill that has overarching effects on an individual’s ability to tolerate unmet wants or needs, handle disappointments and failures, and work towards success. Hence, self-regulation refers to the

Psychologists’ interest in self-regulation has increased in recent years and the self-regulation term has begun to gain importance. Psychologists began to approach self-regulation as a key to understanding human self, so they focus on self-regulation researches. (Forgas, Baumeister, & Tice, 2009). Especially, in recent years psychologists developed the concept of self-regulation and a variety of different self-regulation models were emerged. Thus, a range of views that differ in the various principles of self-regulation were appeared. However, all of these different models share two basic features (Cameron & Leventhal, 2003). A first common feature is to expound self-regulation as a dynamic motivational system of setting goals, developing and performing strategies to achieve those goals, appraising progress, and revising goals and strategies accordingly. A second common characteristic is that self-regulation is also concerned with the management of emotional responses, which are seen as vital elements of the motivational system (Ridder & Wit, 2006). In regard to first feature of self-regulation, Zimmerman and Schunk (2008), propound a definition for self-regulation “the control of one’s present conduct based on motives related a subsequent goal or ideal that an individual has set for him or herself”. Thus, self-regulation involves controlling one’s behavior in order to

Distinguishing approach motivation from avoidance motivation could be considered in the history of thought about the behaviour of human (Elliot, 2008). The origin of the approach avoidance distinction traced back to ancient Greek philosophers and scholars have been made the distinction between approach avoidance motivations for 2000 years (Elliot & Covington, 2001). It is obvious that approach and avoidance motivation has deep and widespread intellectual roots and approach-avoidance distinction have been making in different time periods and under various construct. At the present, approach avoidance motivations still have great significance in different concepts of psychology and these motivations are seen as basic categories of motivation theories. There is no doubt that approach-avoidance motivations are integral to successful adaptation and they have great importance on human functioning (Elliot, 2006). With the fundamental nature of approach and avoidance motivation, and its omnipresent entity in psychological functioning, approach avoidance distinction could be considered as the principle of human motivation studies (Berntson, Boysen & Cacioppo, 1993). The distinction between approach and avoidance motives and goals has suggestions for understanding behavior, health, and well-being (Gable, 2006). Psychologists have asserted that human motivation could be understood as based on