0.12 Self-regulation: a definition and introduction

What is self-regulation? Which mental processes compose it, and how do thoseprocesses work together? Self-regulation is the conscious and nonconsciousprocesses by which people regulate their thoughts, emotions, attention, behavior,and impulses. People generate thoughts, feelings and actions and adapt those tothe attainment of personal goals. Behavioral self-regulation invovles self-observing and strategically adjusting performance processes, such as one'smethod of learning, whereas environmental self-regulation refers to observing andadjecting environmental conditions or outcomes. Covert self regulation involvesmonitoring and adjusting cognitive and affective states, such as imagery forremembering or relaxing. Someones performance and regulation is going to bechanged by their goals, motivations, and decisions, People self-regulate their ownfunctioning in order to achieve goals or change how they are thinking.

Someones actions and mental processes depend on one's beliefs and motives. Self-regulation is cyclical - that is, feedback (information, responses) fromprior actions and performances changes the adjustments made during current efforts.Adjustments are necessary because personal, behavioral, and environmentalfactors are constantly changing during the course of learning and performance.Someones performances are constantly being changed by their attention and actions.Forethought is the phase that precedes efforts to act and sets the stage for aperformance. A person self-reflects on performances afterwards, and thisreflection influences their responses.

Forethought phase

Performance phase

Also as part of someone's performance they do self-observation. This refers to aperson's tracking of specific aspects of their own performance, the conditions thatsurround it, and the effects that it produces. You can set goals in forethoughtabout how you are going to do self- observation.

Self-reflection phase