Decisional Regret Theory: Reducing the Anxiety About Uncertain Outcomes During Group Decision Making Through Shared Counterfactual Storytelling

Abstract

People want to live in a predictable world, yet regularly face uncertain outcomes from decision choices. Here, a decision-making theory of communication is proposed. Faced with decisions, people experience anxiety as they anticipate choice-regret. The communicative dynamic of Decisional Regret Theory (DERT) is the production, sharing, and reconstruction of predecisional imaginary narratives that allow alternative decisional outcomes to be anticipated. DERT predicts a type of shared communication (counterfactual storytelling) under specific circumstances (anticipation of making a meaningful decision). It further predicts listener responses: (a) reproducing the story, (b) altering the story, (c) creating an alternative story, or (d) disconfirming the story. Exemplars of counterfactual communication during jury decision making are offered, together with a model describing the emergence of group counterfactual storytelling.

Keywords:

• Counterfactual Thinking
• Decision Making
• Groups
• Jury
• Narrative
• Regret
• Storytelling

An earlier version of this article was presented to the Group Communication Division of the National Communication Association (2001); the author gratefully acknowledges the thoughtful comments of the respondent to that panel, Jim L. Query, Jr.

Notes

The video-tapes of four real-world criminal juries were examined, obtained by permission of the Arizona Supreme Court and all trial participants. Trial A involved a possession of narcotics charge in which drugs were found in suitcases at the airport (twelve hour deliberation, ending in deadlock); Trial B involved a charge of assault that resulted from a nighttime shooting in a residential neighborhood, where one man died (9-1/2 hours of deliberation, ending in deadlock); Trial C jurors convicted (after three hours) a defendant who was charged with armed robbery, resulting from an incident at a convenience store in which a six-pack of beer was stolen from the store's clerk at gunpoint; Trial D was the retrial of Trial A, concluding with a conviction after only 45 minutes of deliberation.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Sunwolf

Sunwolf is Associate Professor in the Department of Communication at Santa Clara University, a former trial attorney, and Visiting Professor at Santa Clara University Law School.