ABSTRACT

This chapter describes aspects of the view we hold on the self-regulation of action and affect. It begins with the idea that two layers of feedback processes manage two different aspects of behavior, operating together, allowing people to juggle multiple tasks and conserve resources. In this way, multiple, simultaneous motivations are transformed into a stream of actions shifting repeatedly from one goal to another. Though this chapter does not cover all issues in the regulation of goals (see especially, this volume, Fishbach, Chapter 10; Oettingen & Gollwitzer, Chapter 8), it provides a conceptual framework that is compatible in many respects with diverse other viewpoints.