Agent-regret, psychological distance, and first-person perspective

Philosophical discussions of agent-regret have typically explained its distinctiveness by appealing to an expanded notion of agency. On this view, the lorry driver feels something special compared with spectators because his agency is implicated in the event. This paper proposes an alternative account grounded in psychological distance rather than agency. I argue that the driver’s distinctive experience arises from his unique configuration of spatial, temporal, social, and hypothetical distance to the event, which produces a deeper form of ordinary regret, sadness, or pity rather than a sui generis emotion. This account accommodates a wider range of cases and aligns with empirical findings showing that observers do not expect guilt or other agency-related emotions in cases of accidental harms. Psychological distance thus offers a viable and more parsimonious explanation of the first-personal aspect of agent-regret.