Staying the course: Decision makers who escalate commitment are trusted and trustworthy.

Charles Adam Dorison · Christopher Umphres · Jennifer Susan Lerner

22 citations0/0 files storedJournal of Experimental Psychology General

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Decision-Making and Behavioral Economics Experimental Behavioral Economics Studies Psychology of Social Influence

Abstract

= 3,888), we tested the hypothesis that escalating commitment signals trustworthiness. Experiments 1-2, respectively, revealed that decision makers who escalated commitment were perceived as more trustworthy and entrusted with 29% more money by third-party observers. Experiment 3 revealed that decision makers who escalated commitment subsequently made more trustworthy choices, returning 15% more money than those who de-escalated. Decision makers were equally likely to escalate commitment in public versus in private, possibly because they previously internalized how others would evaluate them. Complementing research examining cognitive factors driving escalation of commitment, the present work reveals that accounting for the reputational causes and consequences of decisions to escalate enhances understanding of why escalation is so common and suggests how organizations might reduce it. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

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References

2002Trust in leadership: Meta-analytic findings and implications for research and practice.2011Differences Between Tight and Loose Cultures: A 33-Nation Study 1999TRUST AND DISTRUST IN ORGANIZATIONS: Emerging Perspectives, Enduring Questions 1954The theory of decision making.1985The psychology of sunk cost 1999Accounting for the effects of accountability.2012A 21 Word Solution 1970Experiments in intergroup discrimination.

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