The Self-other Decision-making Differences In Selecting Subjects Of The New College Entrance Examination Reform: The Role Of Anticipatory Guilt

In September 2014,the State Council promulgated the Implementation Opinions on Deepening the Reform of the Examination and Enrollment System,which officially launched a new round of college entrance examination reform.In 2018,Hunan and other 8 provinces and cities became the third batch of provinces to join the comprehensive reform of the new college entrance examination.As an important measure to promote the reform of the new college entrance examination,college selection is also an important social decision facing individuals,which plays a pivotal role in the success of the individual college entrance examination and the development of their career.In real life,individuals need to choose not only for themselves,but also may face candidates for him.Therefore,the self-other decision-making difference of the new college entrance examination reform has become a hot issue in today’s society.However,research on this hot issue is currently in blank stages.Based on the relevant decision-making theory,this paper plans to discuss the differences between self-selection and others ’ decision-making in the new college entrance examination reform,and tries to clarify the influence of the social distance between others and self on such a difference.This paper contains two studies.Study 1 constructed four subject types(high difficulty-high difficulty,low interest,low interest-low interest,low difficulty-low interest),and examined the differences between individuals ’ self-selection and other preference under the four types of subjects.Study 2 adopts the types of subjects that have differences in choice preferences in study 1,which further discusses the preference differences between individuals ’ self-selection and candidates from different societies,and examines the role of expected guilt in the self-others decision differences in the selection of the new college entrance examination reform.The results found that individuals believed that difficult high interest subjects were significantly less attractive than to others,and low low interest subjects were significantly more attractive than to others.However,individuals believe that there is no significant difference between difficult and low interest subjects,low difficulty and high interest subjects and their attraction to others.Individuals are significantly less likely to choose difficult and high interest subjects for themselves than difficult and high interest subjects for others,and low difficulty and low interest subjects for themselves than low difficulty and low interest subjects for others.However,there is no significant difference between the possibility of individuals choosing high difficulty and low interest subjects,low difficulty and high interest subjects,and the possibility of choosing difficult and low interest subjects,and low difficulty and high interest subjects for others.The two results found that there were significant preference differences for themselves and for strangers,but there was no significant preference difference for themselves or for friends.Individuals choose subjects for themselves and for friends,prefer low difficulty and low interest subjects,and prefer high interest subjects for strangers.Moreover,in addition,expected guilt plays an intermediary role in decision-making subjects and subject choice preference: compared with choosing subjects for strangers,individuals have less expected guilt caused by choosing low difficulty and low interest subjects for themselves,which leads to individuals to choose low difficulty and low interest subjects for themselves and difficult and high interest subjects for strangers.The above results show that there are differences in self-others in the selection of the new college entrance examination reform,which is regulated by social distance.With the increase of social distance,the more individuals prefer to choose difficult and high interest subjects.And guilt is expected to play an intermediary role in decision objects and subject selection preferences.The findings of this paper reveal for the first time the self-other decision difference and the potential psychological mechanism.This not only enriches the research scope of self-others ’ decision-making differences,but also provides a valuable reference for the selection of the new college entrance examination reform.