What Doesn’t Break You Makes You Wiser: An Experimental Validation of Personal Wisdom Development Through Regret Handling and Personality Dispositions

Abstract

Personal growth occurs with life experiences and, most importantly, reflecting on negative life experiences. This article argues that personal wisdom development involves pain and suffering yet feels more satisfying in retrospect. The present study attempts to explore, 1) if people with different personality dispositions differ in the choices and handling regret in the face of failure 2) if people with higher action orientation chose a risky option and how they handle it, and finally 3) does personality disposition predict regret handling. The results suggested that openness and action orientation significantly influence choice-making. Individuals high on openness and action orientation explore more alternatives, choose risky options, and report less regret if faced with failure. The mediator analysis suggested that individuals with initiative tendencies and openness regret less than their counterparts. However, individuals with high initiatives and openness to experience regret more than people with only one of them.