Effort investment in uncontrollable situations: The moderating role of motivation toward closure

Paulina Szwed,Małgorzata Kossowska,Marcin Bukowski

doi:10.1007/s11031-021-09868-4

Paulina Szwed, Małgorzata Kossowska + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-021-09868-4

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Abstract

According to the principle of energy-conservation principle, effort investment is usually reduced in situations that are perceived as uncontrollable. This is because when success is recognized as impossible, any effortful actions are no longer justified. However, we predicted that individual differences in uncertainty tolerance, i.e., the need for closure (NFC), may moderate effort investment in uncontrollable situations. We tested this prediction in two experimental studies in which we exposed participants with differing levels of NFC to uncontrollable events, and indexed effort through the assessment of systolic blood pressure (SBP) responses. As predicted, in the uncontrollability (vs. controllability) condition, effort investment decreased significantly among low- but not high-NFC participants. Since gaining certainty and achieving closure is not a critical epistemic goal for low-NFC individuals, exerting extra effort to gain certainty is therefore no longer justified. On the other hand, high-NFC participants do not withhold their efforts, as they are highly motivated to obtain certainty. These results may help to account for contradictory findings in effort-investment behaviour and add substantively to the literature concerning motivation toward closure.

Highlights

For over four decades, the topic of the psychological consequences of facing an uncontrollable situation has attracted the attention of motivational, clinical, social, cognitive, and developmental psychologists (Bukowski and Kofta 2017; Langer and Roth 1975; Mikulincer 1994; Pittman and Pittman 1980; Seligman 1975; Skinner 1995; Weary et al 1993)
In terms of motivation intensity theory (MIT), we argue that differences in need for closure (NFC) should set the different levels of potential motivation in a task performance situation when the level of difficulty remains unknown, and in turn, should guide the level of invested effort
We found no main effect of NFC (b = 2.03, SE = 6.44, t = 0.31, p = 0.7538, 95% CI [− 10.81; 14.87]) nor of experimental conditions (b = 3.33, SE = 38.50, t = 0.09, p = 0.9313, 95% CI [− 73.43; 80.09]) on systolic blood pressure (SBP) values

Summary

Introduction

The topic of the psychological consequences of facing an uncontrollable situation has attracted the attention of motivational, clinical, social, cognitive, and developmental psychologists (Bukowski and Kofta 2017; Langer and Roth 1975; Mikulincer 1994; Pittman and Pittman 1980; Seligman 1975; Skinner 1995; Weary et al 1993). Loss of control can be described as a highly aversive state which has acute consequences for human well-being and performance (Maier and Seligman 1976). Seligman (1975) showed that when faced with uncontrollability, organisms suffer from cognitive, affective, and motivational deficits. Lacking control was associated with passive, apathetic

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