Heres why we feel a tinge of guilt, but still repeat our mistakes

Ever wonder why even after feeling guilty about something we have done, and swearing never to do it again, we go right ahead and repeat the mistake? Well, thats just the questions researchers have now found the answer to.

Washington, Aug 8 : Ever wonder why even after feeling guilty about something we have done, and swearing never to do it again, we go right ahead and repeat the mistake? Well, that's just the questions researchers have now found the answer to.

In two studies, Suresh Ramanathan (University of Chicago), and Patti Williams (Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania), examined the immediate and delayed emotional consequences of engaging in indulgent consumption among both prudent and impulsive consumers.

They found that both impulsive and prudent consumers experience a mixture of positive and negative emotions immediately after consuming a food indulgence

However, the components of the emotional ambivalence are different across the two groups.

"While the impulsive consumers do feel negative emotions such as stress, they do not feel much guilt or regret," the authors reveal.

Also, over the course of time, these emotions differ when it comes to the two types of consumers.

While impulsive people continue to feel residual effects of their positive emotions over time, but experience a sharp decline in their negative emotions, prudent people continue to experience strong negative and self-conscious emotions, but report significantly lower levels of positive emotions.

"Thus, over time, impulsive consumers are left only with their positive feelings about indulging, while prudent consumers are left only with their negative feelings about indulging. This, in turn, affects propensity to repeat an act of indulgence," the authors explain.

This is the reason, the researchers state, that impulsive consumers are much more likely to engage in a second indulgent act over time.

The studies are published in the August issue of the Journal of Consumer Research.

ANI