The Effects of Explicit Goals and Specific Feedback on Escalation Processes

The present study was designed to look at the effects of two important factors on escalation behavior: explicit goals and specific feedback concerning negative decision consequences. Subjects were assigned to one of six conditions in a 2(explicit goal, general goal) × 3(feedback: small, moderate, or large ‐failure) factorial design. Results demonstrated that as failure feedback increased from small to moderate levels, subjects with explicit goals escalated their commitment, but they de‐escalated when feedback indicated a large goal/feedback discrepancy. In contrast, feedback had no effect on allocation behavior for general goal subjects. The study also content analyzed subjects' self‐descriptions in an attempt to explore the processes used to reach an allocation decision. The importance of goals and feedback as well as the need for alternative theoretical frameworks, such as control theory, to explain escalation behavior is discussed.