 Pushing through the tension while stuck in the mud: Paradox mindset and escalation of commitmentDustin J. Sleesman Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 2019, vol. 155, issue C, 83-96 Abstract: After investing resources in a course of action that is currently failing, individuals face the difficult and complex decision of how to respond to it. Extant research indicates that this situation entails a paradoxical tension: individuals feel compelled to continue the failing course, while also feeling pulled to respond to its negative feedback. I argue that individuals with a paradox mindset (i.e., the extent to which they accept and are energized by tensions) will respond to the situation by developing a sense of optimism about being able to successfully work through it. Four experiments demonstrate that a paradox mindset is associated with optimism and persistence with a failing course. However, these relationships are largely attenuated in situations where an alternative course of action is salient. This research offers a fresh perspective on the escalation of commitment phenomenon, and it helps to establish the boundary conditions for the effects of paradox mindset. Keywords: Escalation of commitment; Paradox mindset; Sunk cost; Persistence; Optimism; Cognition; Decision making (search for similar items in EconPapers) Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jobhdp:v:155:y:2019:i:c:p:83-96 DOI: 10.1016/j.obhdp.2019.03.008 Access Statistics for this article Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes is currently edited by John M. Schaubroeck More articles in Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes from Elsevier |
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