Elaboration on Potential Outcomes (Negative Focus)

What it measures

A four-item likert scale designed to measure the degree to which a person is fixated on the negative consequences of his/her decisions rather than the positive.

Response format

7-point Likert (1=strongly disagree, 7=strongly agree)

Scale items

• I tend to think a lot about the negative outcomes that might occur as a result of my actions.
• I am often afraid that things might turn out badly.
• When thinking over my decisions I focus more on their negative end results.
• I often worry about what could go wrong as a result of my decisions.

Full scale items shown. Always cite the original source when using this scale in research.

Usage notes & scoring

Convergent and discriminant validity evidence was provided by the original authors. Subscale of the full Elaboration on Potential Outcomes (EPO) scale, which comprises three dimensions: Generation/Evaluation (6 items), Negative Outcome Focus (4 items), and Positive Outcome Focus (3 items). Built to operationalize Carver & Scheier's (1998) self-regulation theory — Carver, C. S., & Scheier, M. F. (1998). On the self-regulation of behavior. Cambridge University Press. Originally attributed to Carver & Scheier (1998, book); correct scale source confirmed as Nenkov, Inman & Hulland (2008). α = .82–.90 reported across validation trials.

Citation

Nenkov, G. Y., Inman, J. J., & Hulland, J. (2008). Considering the future: The conceptualization and measurement of elaboration on potential outcomes. Journal of Consumer Research, 35(1), 126–141.

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