Daily shifts in regulatory focus: The influence of work events and implications for employee well-being

Although theory suggests that regulatory focus fluctuates within person and such fluctuations impact employee well-being, there is little empirical investigation of such propositions. These are important research questions to address because work events may elicit within-person fluctuations in regulatory focus, which can then affect well-being. The primary purpose of this study is to examine specific predictors of daily regulatory focus at work and the foci's impact on employee well-being at work and home as indicated by mood and psychosomatic complaints, respectively. We present and test an overarching theoretical framework that integrates conservation of resources theory, the cognitive-affective processing system framework, and regulatory focus theory to delineate why and when work events affect regulatory focus and how the foci affect well-being. Consistent with our expectations, we found that positive work events positively predicted daily promotion focus, but this effect was weaker when employees had high-quality relationships with leaders. Furthermore, daily regulatory focus was associated with employee well-being (mood and psychosomatic complaints) such that (i) promotion focus improved well-being; (ii) prevention focus reduced well-being; and (iii) the effects of promotion focus on well-being were strongest when prevention focus was low. We discuss theoretical and practical implications and offer directions for future research. Copyright (c) 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.