The self-presentational consequences of upholding one’s stance in spite of the evidence

Publication date: September 2019Source: Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Volume 154Author(s): Leslie K. John, Martha Jeong, Francesca Gino, Laura HuangAbstractFive studies explore the self-presentational consequences of refusing to “back down” – that is, upholding a stance despite evidence of its inaccuracy. Using data from an entrepreneurial pitch competition, Study 1 shows that entrepreneurs tend not to back down even though investors are more impressed by entrepreneurs who do. Next, in two sets of experiments, we unpack the psychology underlying why actors refuse to publicly back down and investigate observers’ impressions of those actors. Specifically, we show that observers view people who refuse to back down as intelligent but lacking confidence, and these perceptions drive consequential decisions about such refusers, such as whether to invest in their ideas (Studies 1 & 2) or whether to hire them (Study 3). Although actors can intuit these effects (Study 4), this understanding is not reflected in their behavior because they are concerned with saving face (Study 5).

Source: Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes - July 23, 2019 Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Source Type: research