Don’t Just Do Something, Sit There! Decisiveness as a Product of Mindfulness and Acceptance Traits

Decisiveness, the capacity to commit to difficult choices, has traditionally been studied through cognitive and motivational frameworks, leaving the role of one's relationship to inner experience open. Two studies examine dispositional mindfulness, acceptance, and regret sensitivity as predictors of decisiveness. In Study 1 ( n = 64), all three significantly predicted decisiveness. In Study 2 ( n = 49), regret sensitivity and mindfulness remained significant, though acceptance's association attenuated, coinciding with a stronger acceptance-mindfulness correlation. Across both studies, regret sensitivity was the strongest and most consistent predictor ( β = −.31 in Study 1 and −.50 in Study 2), suggesting that an unwillingness to accept the irreversibility of past choices may undermine confident commitment to future ones. Mindfulness and acceptance predicted decisiveness independently of their association with regret. These findings extend decision avoidance research beyond cognitive and affective accounts, positioning decisiveness as an expression of practical wisdom within a broader psychology of character.