Consumer mindsets and self‐enhancement: Signaling versus learning

Abstract

The mindset framework and its downstream effects provide exciting new opportunities to explore one of the powerful drivers of consumer and organizational behavior. To advance discussions on the concept and applications of mindsets in consumer research and in the marketplace, we (1) provide conceptual and contextual clarity into the signaling mechanism and the process/outcome focus by identifying relevant and meaningful consumer contexts, (2) consider the unique theoretical contributions implicit theory may make to the field of consumer psychology, and (3) suggest potential solutions for important methodological challenges researchers and practitioners may face when implementing the mindsets framework. Finally, we (4) highlight the managerial and organizational relevance of mindsets.

Consumer psychology of implicit theories: A review and agenda

“…In the broader psychological literature, particularly within educational psychology, a robust finding is that students adopting incremental beliefs consistently outperform and respond better to failure than their entity‐oriented peers (Blackwell et al, ; Dweck & Yeager, ). This “incremental is a superior orientation to entity” thinking is observed to some extent even within the consumer literature (Mathur et al, ; Wheeler & Omair, ). Yet acceptance of this notion has experienced some resistance in recent years.…”

“…This idea is consistent with evidence that reveals even short movie clips can prime differing implicit orientations (Jain et al, ; Mathur et al, ). Such naturalistic settings can temporarily shift consumers’ mindset and, in the process, may be of particular relevance to managers who can more effectively target persuasion appeals under appropriate situational conditions (Mathur, Chun, & Maheswaran, ). More research thus is necessary to establish how to make different orientations salient and delineate the boundary conditions thereof.…”

“…Yet acceptance of this notion has experienced some resistance in recent years. Indeed, entity theorists' fixed belief regarding their own features may imbue them with a sense of confidence and security, especially if they a priori believe that they are successful and accomplished (Mathur et al, ).…”

How a maximizing orientation affects trade‐offs between desirability and feasibility: The role of outcome‐ versus process‐focused decision making

“…Maximizers view the outcomes of their decisions as communicating "information about the self" and their ability, and satisficers view the outcomes as only conveying the quality of their decisions (Schwartz et al, 2002). Individuals with an outcome focus obtain value from attaining their final choice that serves as a signal of their competence and positive characteristics (Mathur, Chun, & Maheswaran, 2016). Thus, outcome-focused individuals are likely to pursue performance goals to demonstrate their abilities and qualities and desire to receive favorable judgments (Dweck, Chiu, & Hong, 1995).…”

Meaningful stories and attitudes toward the brand: The moderating role of consumers' implicit mindsets

“…The dimension of stability versus change is a fundamental aspect of perception (Wheeler & Omair, ). As a result, these contrasting views have a powerful influence on consumer behavior (Dweck, ; Mathur, Chun, & Maheswaran, ; Molden & Dweck, ; Murphy & Dweck, ; Wheeler & Omair, ), including the way individuals respond to advertising appeals (Park & John, ; Yorkston, Nunes, & Matta, ). In the current research, we show that implicit mindsets are, in fact, fundamental in understanding how meaningful (vs. happy) appeals in particular might impact consumer evaluations.…”