Developing thoughts about what might have been

Beck, Sarah R.; Riggs, Kevin

Abstract

Recent research has changed how developmental psychologists understand counterfactual thinking or thoughts of what might have been. Evidence suggests that counterfactual thinking develops over an extended period into at least middle childhood, depends on domain-general processes including executive function and language, and dissociates from counterfactual emotions such as regret. In this article, we review the developmental evidence that forms a critical but often-overlooked complement to the cognitive, social, and neuroscience literatures. We also highlight topics for further research, including spontaneous counterfactual thinking and counterfactual thinking in clinical settings. © 2014 The Society for Research in Child Development.

Citation

Beck, S. R., & Riggs, K. (2014). Developing thoughts about what might have been. Child development perspectives, 8(3), 175-179. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdep.12082

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Online Publication Date: Aug 16, 2014
• Publication Date: 2014-09
• Deposit Date: Apr 21, 2015
• Publicly Available Date: Apr 21, 2015
• Journal: Child development perspectives
• Print ISSN: 1750-8592
• Electronic ISSN: 1750-8606
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 8
• Issue: 3
• Pages: 175-179
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/cdep.12082
• Keywords: Counterfactual thinking, Cognitive development, Imagination, Regret
• Public URL: https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/372777
• Publisher URL: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cdep.12082/abstract
• Additional Information: Authors' accepted manuscript of article: Beck, S. R. and Riggs, K. J. (2014), Developing Thoughts About What Might Have Been. Child Dev Perspect, 8: 175–179. doi:10.1111/cdep.12082