The effect of construal level on predictions of task duration

Kanten, Alf Børre

doi:10.1016/j.jesp.2011.04.005

Cited by 35 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 65 publications

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“…Participants were instructed to estimate the duration of a task of writing a summary, which we revised from Kanten (2011). The construal level was manipulated by supplying each of the two groups with a different description of the task.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Kanten (2011) demonstrated that time units are perceived to be smaller as people move from near to distant temporal contexts, so that high-level construals accompanied by greater temporal distance make people predict less optimistically than when low-level construals are accompanied by nearer temporal contexts. Besides temporal distance, other researchers have tested the effects of social distance on prediction.…”

Section: Construal Level Psychological Distance and Overoptimistic mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We conducted two experiments to examine whether or not, and if so, how, an abstract versus a concrete construal-level mindset affects the degree of optimism in predictions about task completion. All the methods we used were adapted from prior studies (Freitas et al, 2004;Kanten, 2011).…”

Section: The Current Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

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High Construal Level Reduces Overoptimistic Performance Prediction

Yan¹,

Hou²,

Unger³

2014

soc behav pers

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Overoptimistic performance prediction is a very common feature of people's goal-directed behavior. In this study we examined overoptimistic prediction as a function of construal level. In construal level theory an explanation is set out with regard to how people make predictions through the abstract connections between past and future events, with high-level construal bridging near and distant events. We conducted 2 experiments to confirm our hypothesis that, compared with people with local, concrete construals, people with global, abstract construals would make predictions that were less overoptimistic. In Study 1 we manipulated construal level by priming mindset, and participants (n = 81) predicted the level of their productivity in an anagram task. The results supported our hypothesis. In Study 2, in order to improve the generalizability of the conclusion, we varied the manipulation of the construal level by priming a scenario, and measured performance prediction by having the participants (n = 119) estimate task duration. The results showed that high-level construal consistently decreased overoptimistic prediction, supporting our hypothesis. The theoretical implications of our findings are discussed.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Construal Level Psychological Distance and Overoptimistic mentioning

confidence: 99%

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High Construal Level Reduces Overoptimistic Performance Prediction

Yan¹,

Hou²,

Unger³

2014

soc behav pers

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“…The difference in psychological distance between one's own and others' money is relevant to our research because a fixed quantity feels subjectively smaller when evaluated at greater psychological distance (Kanten 2011;Maglio and Trope 2011). For example, 3 months seems shorter if it starts in 12 months (high distance) than if it starts now (low distance; Zauberman, Kim, Malkoc, and Bettman 2009).…”

Section: Theoretical Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Other People’s Money: Money’s Perceived Purchasing Power Is Smaller for Others Than for the Self

Polman

Effron

Thomas

2017

Journal of Consumer Research

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Nine studies find that people believe their money has greater purchasing power than the same quantity of others' money. Using a variety of products from socks to clocks to chocolates, we found that participants thought the same amount of money could buy more when it belonged to themselves versus others -a pattern that extended to undesirable products. Participants also believed their money -in the form of donations, taxes, fines, and fees -would help charities/governments more than others' money. We tested six mechanisms based on psychological distance, the endowment effect, wishful thinking, better-than-average biases, painof-payment, and beliefs about product preferences. Only a psychological distance mechanism received support. Specifically, we found that the perceived purchasing power of other people's money decreased logarithmically as others' psychological distance from the self increased, consistent with psychological distance's subadditive property. Further supporting a psychological distance mechanism, we found that framing one's own money as distant (vs. near) reduced the self-other difference in perceived purchasing power. Our results suggest that beliefs about the value of money depend on who owns it, and we discuss implications for marketing, management, psychology, and economics.

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“…Research investigating the link between construal levels and time perceptions manipulate individuals' construal mindset prior to exposure to a focal stimulus (Hansen and Trope, 2013;Kanten, 2011;Siddiqui et al, 2014), a situation that may not be available to marketing practitioners. Herein, we investigate how one's construal mindset affects the reconstruction of a past event, thus construal level is manipulated as a retrieval cue, an action that is often feasible to marketers.…”

Section: Theoretical Background and Hypothesesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effect of construal level on time perceptions, confidence in judgements and future preferences

Vilches-Montero

Spence

2015

European Journal of Marketing

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Purpose – This paper aims to examine how activating an abstract versus concrete construal as a retrieval cue – prior to providing estimates but after exposure to the stimulus – affects retrospective duration estimates of a hedonic experience, the kind of experience one might wish to repeat. Recent research has examined the effect of construal mindsets on prospective time perceptions (Hans and Trope, 2013) as well as the prediction of future durations (Kanten, 2011; Siddiqui et al., 2014). Design/methodology/approach – Two experiments are presented to test four hypotheses. The effect of construal level on time perceptions, confidence in duration judgments and future preferences using two different construal level manipulation techniques and a range of measures for the dependent variables is demonstrated. Findings – This research found that compared to a neutral experience, time perceptions of an enjoyable event are not explained by differences in the level of attention paid to the stimuli; that duration estimates elicited under abstract construals are shorter than those produced by concrete construals; and regardless of construal mindset, memory decay due to time delay appears to be at work. Hence duration estimates shorten. Moreover, abstract construals decrease confidence in duration judgments, but positively affect future preferences compared to a concrete mindset. Originality/value – This paper expands current knowledge by showing that construal mindsets can be used as retrieval cues to affect evaluations of past experiences and consumers’ experience-based future preferences.

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The effect of construal level on predictions of task duration

Cited by 35 publications

References 65 publications

High Construal Level Reduces Overoptimistic Performance Prediction

High Construal Level Reduces Overoptimistic Performance Prediction

Other People’s Money: Money’s Perceived Purchasing Power Is Smaller for Others Than for the Self

The effect of construal level on time perceptions, confidence in judgements and future preferences

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