The Effect of Mindsets and Resource Type on Escalation of Commitment

ABSTRACT Escalation of commitment refers to the tendency to continue investing resources such as time, money, or effort in a failing course of action despite feedback suggesting that success is unlikely. The extent to which individuals escalate their commitment may depend on their belief that success in the failing course of action depends on their ability to change it, shaped by both their beliefs about their abilities and the type of resources required to achieve the goal. The present research examined how people’s implicit beliefs about the malleability of abilities, that is, their mindsets (growth vs. fixed), interact with the type of resource invested (effort vs. financial) to influence escalation tendencies. Across five experimental studies (N = 2,366), participants’ mindsets were manipulated, and then they were presented with escalation scenarios in which the type of resource invested was manipulated. Escalation of commitment was measured by participants’ willingness and likelihood to continue investing in the failing course of action described. Contrary to predictions, individuals with a growth mindset did not escalate more than those with a fixed mindset when they invested effort. Importantly, as hypothesized, individuals with a fixed mindset were more likely to escalate when they invested effort rather than financial resources, potentially reflecting their motivation to avoid admitting failure. Also consistent with hypotheses, escalation was generally higher following effort-based investments compared to financial ones.