Category width and expectancies: Risk conservatism or generalization?

Abstract

To compare interpretations of category width as an equivalence range and as a risk-taking dimension, an experiment by Phares and Davis (1966) was replicated and extended to examine the effects of unexpected failure and success on expectations for subsequent task performance. High scoring subjects on Pettigrew's (1958) Category Width Scale showed less generalization of expectancy following success and greater generalization following unexpected failure. A measure of similarity between tasks failed to differentiate from narrow categorizers and suggests that broad categorizers may adopt more conservative expectancies following unexpected outcomes of any favorability.