The money priming debate revisited: A review, meta‐analysis, and extension to organizations

Abstract

SummaryThe effects of primed money have received widespread attention in social psychology but not in the organizational literature. This research examines whether priming money causes people to think and behave in ways consistent with how they would act if they received real money. Money priming research has not made many inferences to organizations, but the potential implications of the findings for the workplace are thought‐provoking. However, because some money priming studies failed to replicate and many findings are mixed, we review this literature and meta‐analyze the effects of primed money on two organization‐related outcomes. Meta‐analytic results (12 259 participants, 90 effects adjusted for dependence, and 34 studies) showed that primed money increased performance (d = .38), but it also boosted selfishness (d = .33). These effects were moderated by perceptual or behavioral outcome measures, where primed money increased behavioral selfishness (d = .72) over twice as much as it did behavioral performance (d = .33). These meta‐analytic results clarify extant literature, provide a new platform for future money priming research in organizations, and offer new alternatives for managers looking for viable options to improve employee functioning.