If I Could Turn Back Time:
Occupational Regret and its
Consequences for Work and Life
Amy Wrzesniewski
Jennifer Tosti
New York University
Janet Landman
Boston University
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Living with Regret over Choice of
Work
“Basically, the reason I keep at it…is that my wife is from
this area, she is very happy to be here, and this is the only
firm of its type here that does the kind of law that I have
now trained for and worked in over the last seven years of
my life. It would be very difficult to break out…so I find
myself basically saying, ‘Well, as long as I can do this to
keep the family together, that’s what I’m going to do’.…
It’s a deal with the devil…I’m not a happy guy.”
– Corporate Securities Lawyer
(Bowe, Bowe, & Streeter, 2000)
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Occupational Regret
 Regret – a more or less painful judgment and state of
feeling sorry for misfortunes, limitations, losses,
shortcomings, transgressions, or mistakes (Landman,
1993)
 Occupational Regret – an enduring state of wishing
that one had never entered one’s current occupation
 Challenges the notion of free choice in selecting an
occupation
 Constraints to occupational entry abound:
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Social class, level of education, networks
Needs of family, location
Personal expectations
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Why Study Occupational Regret?
 Work is the second most commonly cited domain
of regret (Landman & Manis, 1992; Roese & Summerville, in
press)
 Regret has been associated with negative mental
states, such as depression, neuroticism and
negative affect (Gudjonsson, 1984; Landman et al., 1995;
Weisman & Worden, 1976-77)
 Focus here is on current, lived regret rather than
hypothetical or past regrets (e.g., Gleicher et al., 1990;
Landman, 1987; Gilovich & Medvec, 1994)
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Central Research Questions
 How does occupational regret affect people’s
responses to and feelings about their work and, as
a result, their lives? (Study 1)
 What role does personality play in people’s
experience of occupational regret? (Study 2)
 How does occupational regret affect overall
mental health and functioning? (Study 2)
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Occupational Regret and the
Experience of Work (Study 1)
 Satisfaction with work constitutes a significant
part of the quality and meaning in life
(Loscocco &
Roschelle, 1991)
 Evidence of pervasive regret among teachers
(Moracco, D’Arienzo & Danford, 1983)
 Teachers who felt regret were more likely to be
absent from work due to stress (Moracco et al., 1983)
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Hypotheses
H1: Occupational regret will negatively affect people’s
satisfaction and engagement with their work and
lives.
H2: Dissatisfaction with work and life will mediate the
relationship between occupational regret and
absence from work.
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Role of Work Orientation
 Defined as people’s relationships to their work; reflected
in our feelings, thoughts, and behaviors related to work
and its role in our lives (Wrzesniewski et al., 1997)
 3 main orientations:
 Jobs: Material benefits from work
‘My primary reason for working is financial – to support
my family and lifestyle.’
Careers: Advancement in occupation
 ‘I expect to be in a higher level job in five years.’
Callings: Fulfillment from work itself
 ‘My work makes the world a better place.’

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May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Benefit of a Calling Orientation
 People who view their work as a Calling (as opposed
to Career or Job) are better off:

More satisfied with work and life (Wrzesniewski et al.,
1997)
More engaged at work (Serow, 1994)
 Like regret, work orientation varies by person within
an occupation
 The root of regret is based on the experience of the
work itself rather than extrinsic motivators (e.g., pay,
benefits)

May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Work Orientation Hypotheses
H3: People who regret their choice of occupation will be
less intrinsically motivated, and more extrinsically
motivated at work.
H4: People who feel regret over their choice of occupation
will be less likely to have a Calling orientation and
more likely to have a Career or Job orientation.
H5: A Calling orientation will alleviate (moderate) the
negative impact of occupational regret on satisfaction
and engagement with work and life.
H6: A Calling orientation will mediate the relationship
between occupational regret and satisfaction and
engagement with work and life.
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Methods – Study 1
 Survey conducted among nurses at a mid-sized
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public hospital in the Midwest
105 respondents (35% response rate)
Mean age = 40.0 (s.d. = 9.3)
98% female
Average 2 children
Mean tenure in occupation = 10.7 years (s.d. = 8.9,
range 1-37 years)
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Measures – Study 1
Independent Variable
 Occupational Regret (several items adapted from Ryff &
Heincke’s Views of Living Scale, 1983) (alpha = .82)
Dependent Variables
 Job and Life Satisfaction (Campbell et al., 1976)
 Internal Work Motivation (Hackman & Oldham, 1975)
 Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation (Amabile et al., 1994)
 Work Orientation (Wrzesniewski et al., 1997)
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Results – Study 1
 Respondents who indicated that they had not chosen
their line of work had significantly higher regret
scores (M = 4.37) than with those who had chosen
their work (M = 2.62), t(101) = 5.89***
 After controlling for age, sex, tenure and number of
children, regret was related to:

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* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
Job satisfaction (beta = -.53***)
Work motivation (beta = -.43***)
Life satisfaction (n.s.)
Days of work missed (n.s.)
Intrinsic motivation (beta = -.22*)
Calling orientation (beta = -.42***)
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
(H1)
(H1)
(H1, H2)
(H3)
(H4)
Results – Calling as Moderator
Calling orientation significantly moderated the impact of
regret on job satisfaction (beta = .20*) (H5)
6
Job Satisfaction
5.5
5
Low Regret
High Regret
4.5
4
3.5
3
Low Calling
*
p<.05
High Calling
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Results – Calling as Mediator
Calling orientation fully mediated the relationship
between occupational regret and intrinsic motivation. (H6)
beta = -.42***
Occupational
Regret
Calling
Orientation
beta = -.22*
beta = -.01
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
beta = .48***
Intrinsic
Motivation
Results – Calling as Mediator
Calling orientation partially mediated the relationship
between occupational regret and job satisfaction. (H6)
beta = -.42***
Occupational
Regret
Calling
Orientation
beta = -.53***
beta = -.37***
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
beta = .45***
Job
Satisfaction
Disposition and Regret (Study 2)
 Individual personality traits shape job attitudes,
including satisfaction, as well as performance (Barrick,
Mount & Judge, 2001; Judge & Locke, 1993; Staw & Cohen-Charash,
2005)
 Impact of personality holds over time and across
occupations (Staw et al., 1986; Staw & Ross, 1985)
 Big Five personality factors (Costa & McCrae, 1992)

Extraversion, agreeableness and openness are generally
linked with positive work outcomes (Tokar & Subich, 1997;
McCrae & Costa, 1991)

Neuroticism linked to poor job performance (Furnham &
Zacherl, 1986; Judge & Locke, 1993)

Conscientiousness linked to job performance (Barrick &
Mount, 1991)
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Regret and Overall Functioning
 Extends the scope of occupational regret
outside of the domain of work


Work plays a large role in people’s lives
People’s experiences of their work have been
found to affect life satisfaction (Wrzesniewski et
al, 1997)
 Mental health indicators:
 Depression
 Anxiety
 Somatic symptoms
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Study 2 Hypotheses

Confirmation of Study 1 hypotheses and results.
H7: Personality traits will moderate the relationship
between occupational regret and satisfaction and
engagement with work and life.
H7a: Extraversion, openness to experience and
agreeableness will alleviate the negative
effects of regret.
H7b: Neuroticism will exacerbate the negative
effects of regret.
H7c: Conscientiousness will have no effect.
H8: Occupational regret will negatively affect mental
health.
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Methods – Study 2
 Survey conducted among nurses at a large, private
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hospital in the Northeast
119 respondents (59% response rate)
Mean age = 39.0 (s.d. = 7.9)
95% female
Average 1 child
Mean tenure in occupation = 14.1 years (s.d. = 8.2,
range 1-38 years)
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Measures – Study 2
Refinements and additions from Study 1:
 Life Satisfaction measure changed from 1 to 6 items
(Diener, Emmons, Larsen & Griffin, 1985)
 Job Satisfaction measure changed from 1 to 3 items
(Cammann, Fichman, Jenkins & Klesh, 1979)
 NEO Personality Inventory (Costa & McCrae, 1985)
 Mental Health assessed by Hopkins Symptom
Checklist (Derogatis, Lipmann, Rickels, Uhlenhuth & Covi,
1974)
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Results – Study 2
 After controlling for age, sex, tenure and number of
children, regret was related to:

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

* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
Job satisfaction (beta = -.60***)
Life satisfaction (beta = -.40***)
(H1)
Days of work missed (beta = .23*)
Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation (n.s.) (H3)
Calling orientation (beta = -.52***)
(H4)
Career orientation (beta = .42***)
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Results – Life Satisfaction as Mediator
Life satisfaction fully mediated the relationship
between occupational regret and the number of days
missed in a year. (H2)
beta = -.40***
Occupational
Regret
Life
Satisfaction
beta = .23*
beta = .11
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
beta = -.31**
Days
Missed
Results – Calling as Mediator
Calling orientation partially mediated the relationship
between occupational regret and job satisfaction. (H6)
beta = -.52***
Occupational
Regret
Calling
Orientation
beta = -.60***
beta = -.40***
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
beta = .39***
Job
Satisfaction
Results – Calling as Mediator
Calling orientation partially mediated the relationship
between occupational regret and life satisfaction. (H6)
beta = -.52***
Occupational
Regret
Calling
Orientation
beta = -.40***
beta = -.34***
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
beta = .23***
Life
Satisfaction
Results – Personality as Moderator
Extraversion significantly moderated the effect of regret
on job satisfaction (beta = .19*) (H7a)
6
5.8
Job Satisfaction
5.6
5.4
5.2
Low Regret
High Regret
5
4.8
4.6
4.4
4.2
4
Low Extraversion
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
High Extraversion
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Results – Personality as Moderator
Agreeableness significantly moderated the effect of
regret on job satisfaction (beta = .19*) (H7a)
6
5.8
Job Satisfaction
5.6
5.4
5.2
Low Regret
High Regret
5
4.8
4.6
4.4
4.2
4
Low Agreebleness
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
High Agreeableness
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Results – Overall Functioning
 After controlling for age, sex, tenure and number of
children, regret was positively related to the following
mental health outcomes: (H8)
 Overall measure of poor mental health (beta = .20*)


Depression (beta = .20*)
Paranoia (beta = .26**)
 These mental health outcomes partially mediated the
relationship between occupational regret and life
satisfaction
 Overall measure of poor mental health (p<.08†)


† p<.10
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
Depression (p<.08†)
Paranoia (p<.05†)
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Summary of Findings
 The experience of occupational regret has negative
implications for both satisfaction and engagement
with work and life.
 Having a calling orientation protects people from the
negative relationship of occupational regret with job
satisfaction.
 Extraversion and agreeableness buffer people from
the effect of regret on job satisfaction.
 Occupational regret is related to poor mental health
and functioning, which in turn is related to reduced
satisfaction with life.
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Theoretical & Practical Contributions
 Measures the lived experience of one of the most
commonly regretted life domains



Affects overall functioning
One of the daily lived regrets
Reminder of the most common area of regret,
education (Roese & Summerville, in press)
 Suggests paths that ameliorate effects of regret:
 Calling orientation, finding fulfillment and meaning
in work itself
 Dispositional traits that focus on positive emotion
and adaptation
 In the future, consider role of organizations
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
THANK YOU!
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Regret Measure
12 items, 1-7 scale
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If I could turn back the clock, there are many things in my work life I would
do differently.
All in all, I am comfortable with the work choices I have made. (r)
It doesn’t bother me to think about work goals I haven’t reached and
probably never will. (r)
If I had to do it all over again, there are very few things about my work life
that I would change. (r)
In general, I would say I have few regrets about my past work life. (r)
I have consciously chosen my current line of work. (r)
I often think about switching occupational paths.
I regret not having entered the line of work I always hoped to enter.
I am happy about the occupational choice I have made. (r)
I feel I have made a mistake in going into this line of work.
My occupational choice was dependent on other people in my life.
I feel I have ended up in my current line of work through factors beyond
my control.
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Work Orientation
20 items (Wrzesniewski et al., 1997), True/False
scale (Study 1), 1-7 scale (Study 2)
Calling
 I would choose my current work life again if I had the
opportunity.
 I find my work rewarding.
 My work makes the world a better place.
Career
 I expect to be at a higher level job in five years.
 I view my job primarily as a stepping stone to other jobs.
Job
 My primary reason for working is financial – to support my
family and lifestyle.
 I am eager to retire.
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Internal Work Motivation
6 items (Hackman & Oldham, 1975), 1-6 scale
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My opinion of myself goes up when I do my work well.
I feel a great sense of personal satisfaction when I do my
work well.
I feel bad and unhappy when I discover that I have
performed poorly in my work.
My own feelings are generally not affected much one way or
the other by how well I do on my work. (r)
Most people in this line of work feel a great sense of
personal satisfaction when they do the work well.
Most people in this line of work feel bad or unhappy when
they find they have performed the work poorly.
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation
30 item Work Preference Inventory (Amabile et al.,
1994), 1-4 scale
Intrinsic Motivation
 It’s important to me to be doing what I really enjoy.
 I want to find out how good I really can be at my work.
 Curiosity is a driving force behind much of what I do.
 I enjoy tackling problems that are completely new to me.
Extrinsic Motivation
 To me, success means doing better than other people.
 I want other people to find out how good I really can be at
work.
 I’m strongly motivated by the money I can earn.
 I prefer working on projects with clearly specified procedures.
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Job Satisfaction
Study 1
1 item (Campbell et al., 1976), 1-7 scale

All things considered, how satisfied are you with your job?
Study 2
3 items (Cammann, Fichman, Jenkins, & Klesh,
1979 ), 1-7 scale

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
All in all, I am satisfied with my job.
In general, I don’t like my job.
In general, I like working here.
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Life Satisfaction
Study 1
1 item (Campbell et al., 1976), 1-7 scale

How satisfied are you with your life as a whole these days?
Study 2
6 item Satisfaction with Life Scale (Diener, Emmons,
Larsen & Griffin, 1985), 1-7 scale
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In most ways my life is close to my ideal.
The conditions of my life are excellent.
I am satisfied with my life.
So far I have gotten the important things I want in life.
If I could live my life over again, I would change almost
nothing.
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Big 5 Personality
100 item NEO Personality Inventory (Costa &
McCrae, 1985), 1-9 scale
Extraversion
 Talkative, assertive, energetic, bold
Agreeableness
 Kind, trustful, pleasant, sympathetic
Openness to experience
 Intellectual, creative, deep, innovative
Neuroticism
 Jealous, touchy, nervous, insecure
Conscientiousness
 Neat, efficient, careful, steady
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Mental Health
90 item Hopkins Symptom Checklist (SCL-90)
(Derogatis, Lipmann, Rickels, Uhlenhuth, & Covi,
1974), 1-4 scale
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Somatization – headaches, nausea, back pain
Obsessiveness – unpleasant thoughts, worry over
sloppiness
Interpersonal functioning - critical of others, easily hurt
Depression – low energy, cry easily, blame self for things
Anxiety – nervous shakiness, trembling, heart racing
Hostility – easily annoyed, temper out of control
Phobia/fear – afraid to leave home, uneasy in crowds
Paranoia – blame others, can not trust others
Psychoticism – others control thoughts, hear voices
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Correlation Table – Study 1
1. Regret
2. Career orientation
3. Calling orientation
4. Work motivation
5. Intrinsic motivation
6. Job satisfaction
7. Life satisfaction
8. Age
9. Gender
10. Number of children
11. Years in occupation
12. Days missed per year
Mean
Standard Deviation
1
2
.82
.25** .68
-.41** -.08
-.35** -.06
-.14 .14
-.47** -.06
-.21* .02
-.33** -.32**
.22* .10
-.27** -.27**
-.19 -.30**
-.01 -.03
2.82 .28
1.03 .31
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
.79
.07
.71
.45** .11
.79
.57** .08 .30**
.16
.07 .25* .28**
.11
.04 -.10 .10
.19
-.03 .13
.07
.03 -.14 -.16
.14 -.01 -.02 .06
.10 .49** -.16
-.11 .01 -.11 -.07 .05 .49** -.10
-.19 .13 .004 -.26* -.02 -.14 .02
.64 5.09 3.01 4.70 5.04 40.00 .02
.22
.74
.39 1.31 1.03 9.27 .14
** Correlation is significant at the .01 level (2-tailed).
* Correlation is significant at the .05 level (2-tailed).
Coefficient alphas are shown along diagonals
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
10
11
12
.17
-.13 .11
2.17 10.67 2.49
1.49 8.95 3.45
Regression Results – Study 1
Independent Variables
Age
Gender
Number of children
Occupation
Years in occupation
Regret
F-Statistic
Adjusted R2
† p<.10
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
Dependent Variables
(1)
(2)
Calling
Career
Orientation Orientation
0.06
-0.09
0.05
0.02
0.03
-0.15
-0.12
0.09
-.20†
-.22†
-.42***
0.13
4.29***
3.23**
0.17
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
0.12
Regression Results – Job Satisfaction
Independent Variables
Age
Gender
Number of children
Occupation
Years in occupation
Regret
Calling Orientaion
Regret*Calling
F-Statistic
Adjusted R2
† p<.10
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
Equations
(1)
(2)
Job Satisfaction
0.06
-0.01
0.13
0.12
-0.06
-0.02
0.06
.14†
-.18†
-0.07
-.53***
-.37***
.45***
5.59***
0.22
9.73***
0.39
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
(3)
0.05
0.11
-0.06
.15†
-0.08
-.31**
.37***
.20*
9.36***
0.41
Regression Results – Life Satisfaction
Independent Variables
Age
Gender
Number of children
Occupation
Years in occupation
Regret
Calling Orientaion
Regret*Calling
F-Statistic
Adjusted R2
(1)
0.15
-0.1
-0.03
-0.08
-0.05
-0.15
1.26
0.02
Equations
(2)
Life Satisfaction
0.18
-0.11
-0.05
-0.06
-0.03
-0.12
0.02
1.01
0.001
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
(3)
0.18
-0.11
-0.06
-0.06
-0.03
-0.11
0.01
0.03
0.88
-0.01
Regression Results – Work Motivation
Independent Variables
Age
Gender
Number of children
Occupation
Years in occupation
Regret
Calling Orientaion
Regret*Calling
F-Statistic
Adjusted R2
Equations
(1)
(2)
(3)
Work Motivation
-0.02
-0.04
-0.09
.20*
.21*
.22*
-0.08
-0.06
-0.03
-0.02
-0.02
-0.02
-0.03
-0.04
-0.02
-.43***
-.49***
-.54***
-0.09
-0.01
-0.19
3.25**
3.17**
3.15**
0.12
0.14
0.15
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Regression Results – Intrinsic Motivation
Independent Variables
Age
Gender
Number of children
Occupation
Years in occupation
Regret
Calling Orientation
Regret*Calling
F-Statistic
Adjusted R2
† p<.10
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
(1)
-0.12
0.1
0.03
0.11
-0.1
-.22*
1.1
0.01
Equations
(2)
(3)
Intrinsic Motivation
-0.16
-0.13
0.08
0.07
0.003
-0.02
.19†
.19†
0.01
-0.003
-0.01
0.02
.48***
.44***
0.12
4.05***
3.67***
0.18
0.19
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Regression Results – Days Missed
Independent Variables
Age
Gender
Number of children
Occupation
Years in occupation
Regret
Calling Orientaion
Regret*Calling
F-Statistic
Adjusted R2
† p<.10
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
(1)
-.23†
0.01
-0.06
0.08
.21†
-0.07
1.16
0.01
Equations
(2)
Days Missed
-0.19
0.01
-0.09
0.02
0.16
-0.13
-0.19
1.25
0.02
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
(3)
-0.18
0.01
-0.1
0.03
0.16
-0.12
-.21†
0.05
1.11
0.01
Correlation Table – Study 2
1
1. Regret
.85
2. Career orientation
.41**
3. Calling orientation
-.56**
4. Intrinsic motivation
.02
5. Extrinsic motivation
.29**
6. Job satisfaction
-.64**
7. Life satisfaction
-.41**
8. Extraversion
-.11
9. Agreeableness
-.19*
10. Conscientiousness
-.09
11. Neuroticism
.16
12. Openness to experience .12
13. Depression
.15
14. Paranoia
.20*
15. Mental health disorder
Mean
2.68
Standard Deviation
1.03
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
.76
-.16
.27**
.31**
-.14
-.13
-.01
-.04
.03
.06
.10
-.02
.11
.84
.26**
-.28**
.60**
.40**
.26**
.23*
.01
-.22*
.08
-.08
-.10
.77
.11
.14
.17
.25**
.24*
.32**
-.21*
.53**
-.21*
-.06
.68
-.31**
-.25**
-.13
-.08
-.03
.28**
.03
.24*
.25**
.76
.37**
.24*
.13
.11
-.20*
-.04
-.14
-.15
.92
.30**
.34**
.07
-.37**
.16
-.46**
-.37**
.90
.30**
.29**
-.21**
.43**
-.26**
-.14
.91
.62**
-.35**
.51**
-.30**
-.28**
3.09
1.46
4.19
.99
2.95
.41
2.31
.37
5.29
1.34
4.75
1.38
5.91
1.18
** Correlation is significant at the .01 level (2-tailed).
* Correlation is significant at the .05 level (2-tailed).
Coefficient alphas are shown along diagonals
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
7.36
.93
10
11
12
13
.91
-.26** .82
.48** -.23* .86
-.22* .43** -.28** .90
-.17 .27** -.16 .77**
7.30
.92
5.38
1.05
6.64
.90
6.42
7.29
14
15
.78
1.87
2.92
.97
34.44
35.4
Regression Results – Study 2
Independent Variables
Age
Gender
Number of children
Occupation
Years in occupation
Regret
F-Statistic
Adjusted R 2
† p<.10
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
(1)
Calling
Orientation
.28*
-0.06
.16†
-0.02
-.25*
-.52***
10.34***
0.35
Dependent Variables
(2)
(3)
(4)
Career
Orientation Depression
Paranoia
-0.14
-0.03
-0.05
0.1
0.09
0.15
-0.08
0.11
0.13
-0.12
0.1
-0.01
-0.15
0.05
-0.13
.42***
.20*
.26**
6.99**
1.16
2.05†
0.26
0.01
0.06
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
(5)
Disorder
Total
-0.03
0.09
0.1
0.08
-0.02
.20*
1.01
0.00
Regression Results – Job Satisfaction
Independent Variables
Age
Gender
Number of children
Occupation
Years in occupation
Regret
Calling
Regret*Calling
Extraversion
Regret*Extraversion
Agreeableness
Regret*Agreeableness
F-Statistic
2
Adjusted R
† p<.10
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
(1)
0.11
-0.1
0.07
0.04
-0.16
-.60***
12.17***
0.4
Equations
(2)
(3)
(4)
Job Satisfaction
0.07
0.09
.23†
-0.1
-0.1
-0.13
-0.02
-0.02
0.06
-0.01
-0.01
-0.09
-0.11
-0.14
-.26*
-.40***
-.36***
-.56***
.39***
.42***
.13†
.24**
.19*
14.73***
0.49
13.50***
0.5
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
10.53***
0.45
(5)
.25†
-0.12
0.08
-0.09
-.25*
-.57***
0.11
.19*
8.61***
0.39
Regression Results – Life Satisfaction
Independent Variables
Age
Gender
Number of children
Occupation
Years in occupation
Regret
Calling
Depression
Paranoia
Total mental health
F-Statistic
Adjusted R 2
† p<.10
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
(1)
-0.16
-0.03
.18†
0.02
-0.04
-.40***
Equations
(2)
(3)
(4)
Life Satisfaction
-0.11
-0.07
-0.07
-0.11
-0.1
-0.09
0.1
.20*
.20*
-0.04
-0.01
-0.04
-0.14
-0.18
-.23†
-.34***
-.36***
-.36***
.23*
-.34***
-.27**
(5)
-0.07
-0.1
.20*
-0.01
-0.2
-.35***
4.11***
6.56***
7.73***
6.34***
-.38***
8.62***
0.16
0.28
0.32
0.27
0.35
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05
Regression Results – Days Missed
Independent Variables
† p<.10
* p<.05
** p<.01
*** p<.001
Equations
(3)
Days Missed
0.05
0.08
-0.11
0.04
-0.02
0.11
-.23†
-0.001
(1)
(2)
Age
Gender
Number of children
Occupation
Years in occupation
Regret
Calling
Regret*Calling
Life satisfaction
Job satisfaction
F-Statistic
-0.02
0.1
-0.15
0.06
0.03
.23*
0.05
0.08
-0.11
0.04
-0.02
0.11
-.23†
1.33
1.59
1.38
2.27*
-0.2
1.43
Adjusted R 2
0.02
0.05
0.03
0.09
0.03
(4)
(5)
-0.07
0.09
-0.09
0.05
0.02
0.11
0.01
0.08
-0.13
0.05
0.002
0.12
-.31**
May Meaning Meeting 5/7/05