Frustrated or engaged? Regulatory focus predicts experiences with online dating

We examined whether people's motivational orientations towards growth (i.e., promotion focus) and security (i.e., prevention focus), collectively termed regulatory focus, are associated with profile‐browsing experiences and perceived success in online dating. In an internal meta‐analysis of fou...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inPersonal relationships Vol. 28; no. 3; pp. 721 - 744
Main Authors Song, Sue, Lockwood, Penelope
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Hoboken, USA Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.09.2021
Subjects
dating
Favoritism
initiation of personal relationships
personality
Success
Systematic review
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Summary:We examined whether people's motivational orientations towards growth (i.e., promotion focus) and security (i.e., prevention focus), collectively termed regulatory focus, are associated with profile‐browsing experiences and perceived success in online dating. In an internal meta‐analysis of four studies (Ns = 220, 200, 300, and 478), we found that promotion focus was associated with an engaging and easy profile‐browsing experience, along with perceived success, whereas prevention focus was associated with an engaging yet more effortful profile‐browsing experience, along with a perceived lack of success. A preregistered follow‐up study (N = 150) replicated the positive associations between promotion focus and engagement and perceived success, as well as the negative associations between prevention focus and ease and perceived success.
Bibliography:Funding information
Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, Grant/Award Number: 493152
Statement of Relevance
Our research is the first to demonstrate that regulatory focus predicts experiences and perceived success with online dating, currently the most common means of meeting relationship partners in North America (Rosenfeld et al., 2019). We synthesized findings across four studies with internal meta‐analyses, and subsequently replicated key results with a preregistered follow‐up study. We also contextualize the effects of promotion and prevention focus by examining their unique effects over and above general approach–avoidance motivations.
ISSN:1350-4126
1475-6811
DOI:10.1111/pere.12386