Emotional and motivational reactions to failure: the role of illusions of control and explicitness of feedback

Author: Langens, Thomas¹

Source: Motivation and Emotion, Volume 31, Number 2, June 2007 , pp. 105-114(10)

Publisher: Springer

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Abstract:

Previous research has found that illusions of control (IOC) can buffer against the emotional consequences of failure and may increase persistence in the face of failure. Theoretical analyses suggest that IOC are most closely related to a better mood and higher motivation if failure feedback is open to reinterpretation. Two experiments were conducted to test the hypothesis that explicitness (vs. ambiguousness) of failure feedback moderates the consequences of IOC following a failure experience. In accord with predictions, it was found that IOC were subsequently related to a better mood (Study 1) and higher persistence (Study 2) if individuals received ambiguous task-inherent failure feedback. In contrast, explicit failure feedback seemed to neutralize the beneficial effects of IOC. These results are discussed with respect to the adaptiveness of IOC.

Keywords: Illusion of control; Persistence and mood following failure; Failure feedback

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1007/s11031-007-9058-9

Affiliations: 1: Email: langens@uni-wuppertal.de

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