Self-regulation (cybernetic model)
Also known as: Control theory of self-regulation, TOTE model
Goal pursuit works like a thermostat: sense where you are, compare to the goal, act to close the gap.
What it means
The cybernetic or control-theory model of self-regulation casts goal-directed behavior as a negative feedback loop, analogous to a thermostat. A person perceives a current state, compares it against a reference value or goal, and, if a discrepancy exists, acts to reduce it, then senses the result and repeats — the test-operate-test-exit cycle. Carver and Scheier extended this with the insight that affect arises from a second, higher-order loop monitoring the rate of progress: feeling good or bad reflects whether one is closing the gap faster or slower than expected, not the gap's absolute size. The model also incorporates approach loops (reducing distance to desired ends) and avoidance loops (increasing distance from feared ends). Its nuance is the hierarchical nesting of goals, from concrete actions up to abstract values. It matters as a general engineering-inspired architecture for understanding how feelings, monitoring, and action coordinate goal pursuit.
Examples
A dieter weighs in (test), sees she's above target (compare), eats less and exercises (operate), re-weighs (test), and feels good or bad depending on how fast the number is dropping.
A runner checks her watch mid-race, sees she is ten seconds off target pace, speeds up, checks again — and her mood tracks how fast the gap is closing, not its size.
A team reviews monthly spend against plan, trims where it drifts over, re-checks next month — and morale lifts when the overspend shrinks quickly, even while the budget is still red.
First described in Miller, Galanter & Pribram (1960); Carver & Scheier (1981, 1998).