Cleaning Up the big muddy: A meta-analytic review of the determinants of escalation of commitment

Academy of Management Journal

Volumn 55, Issue 3, 2012, Pages 541-562

  Sleesman, Dustin J ^a,b   Conlon, Donald E ^a   McNamara, Gerry ^a   Miles, Jonathan E ^a  

^a MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY   (United States)

^b UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE   (United States)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

EID: 84862222713     PISSN: 00014273     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.5465/amj.2010.0696     Document Type: Review

References (120)

1. Aguinis, H., Dalton, D. R., Bosco, F. A., Pierce, C. A., & Dalton, C. M. 2011. Meta-analytic choices and judgment calls: Implications for theory building and testing, obtained effect sizes, and scholarly impact. Journal of Management, 37: 5-X.
2. Ajzen, I. 1991. The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50: 179-211.
3. Amburgey, T. L., & Miner, A. S. 1992. Strategic momentum: The effects of repetitive, positional, and contextual momentum on merger activity. Strategic Management Journal, 13: 335-348.
4. *Arkes, H. R., & Blumer, C. 1985. The psychology of sunk cost. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 35: 124-140.
5. Aronson, E. 1968. Dissonance theory: Progress and problems. In R. Abelson, E. Aronson, W. McGuire, T. Newcomb, M. Rosenberg & P. Tannenbaum (Eds.), Theories of cognitive consistency: A sourcebook: 5-27. Chicago: Rand McNally.
6. Ashford, S. J. 1993. The feedback environment: An exploratory study of cue use. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 14: 201-224.
7. *Astebro, T., Jeffrey, S. A., & Adomdza, G. K. 2007. Inventor perseverance after being told to quit: The role of cognitive biases. Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, 20: 253-272.
8. *Bazerman, M. H., Beekun, R. I., & Schoorman, F. D. 1982. Performance evaluation in a dynamic context: A laboratory study of the impact of prior commitment to the ratee. Journal of Applied Psychology, 67: 873-876.
9. *Bazerman, M. H., Giuliano, T., & Appelman, A. 1984. Escalation of commitment in individual and group decision making. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 33: 141-152.
10. Bem, D. J. 1972. Self-perception theory. In L. Berkowitz (Eds.), Advances in experimental social psychology, vol. 6: 1-62. New York: Academic.
11. *Berg, J. E., Dickhaut, J. W., & Kanodia, C. 2009. The role of information asymmetry in escalation phenomena: Empirical evidence. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 69: 135-147.
12. *Boehne, D. M., & Paese, P. W. 2000. Deciding whether to complete or terminate an unfinished project: A strong test of the project completion hypothesis. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 81: 178-194.
13. Bommer, W. H., Johnson, J. L., Rich, G. A., Podsakoff, P. M., & Mackenzie, S. B. 1995. On the interchangeability of objective and subjective measures of employee performance: A meta-analysis. Personnel Psychology, 48: 587-605.
14. *Booth, P., & Schulz, A. K. D. 2004. The impact of an ethical environment on managers' project evaluation judgments under agency problem conditions. Accounting, Organizations and Society, 29: 473-488. (Pubitemid 38341251)
15. Bowen, M. G. 1987. The escalation phenomenon reconsidered: Decision dilemmas or decision errors? Academy of Management Review, 12: 52-66.
16. *Bragger, J. D., Bragger, D., Hantula, D. A., & Kirnan, J. 1998. Hysteresis and uncertainty: The effect of uncertainty on delays to exit decisions. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 74: 229-253. (Pubitemid 128347353)
17. *Bragger, J. D., Hantula, D. A., Bragger, D., Kirnan, J., & Kutcher, E. 2003. When success breeds failure: History, hysteresis, and delayed exit decisions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88: 6-14. (Pubitemid 36385688)
18. Brockner, J. 1992. The escalation of commitment to a failing course of action: Toward theoretical progress. Academy of Management Review, 17: 39-61.
19. *Brockner, J., Houser, R., Lloyd, K., Nathanson, S., Birnbaum, G., Deitcher, J., & Rubin, J. Z. 1986. Escalation of commitment to an ineffective course of action: The effect of feedback having negative implications for self-identity. Administrative Science Quarterly, 31: 109-126. (Pubitemid 16093772)
20. *Brockner, J., Rubin, J. Z., Fine, J., Hamilton, T. P., Thomas, B., & Turetsky, B. 1982. Factors affecting entrapment in escalating conflicts: The importance of timing. Journal of Research in Personality, 16: 247-266.
21. Brockner, J., Rubin, J. Z., & Lang, E. 1981. Face-saving and entrapment. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 17: 68-79.
22. *Brody, R. G., & Frank, K. E. 2002. Influence of prior involvement on employees' ratings. Psychological Reports, 90: 139-149.
23. Bromiley, P. 2010. Looking at prospect theory. Strategic Management Journal, 31: 1357-1370.
24. Chen, M. J., Su, K. H., & Tsai, W. P. 2007. Competitive tension: The awareness-motivation-capability perspective. Academy of Management Journal, 50: 101-118.
25. *Conlon, D. E., & Garland, H. 1993. The role of project completion information in resource allocation decisions. Academy of Management Journal, 36: 402-413.
26. Cyert, R. M., & March, J. G. 1963. A behavioral theory of the firm. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
27. Dahl, D. 2001. The big finish. Boston Business Journal, 21: 32.
28. Dalton, D. R., Daily, C. M., Johnson, J. L., & Ellstrand, A. E. 1999. Number of directors and financial performance: A meta-analysis. Academy of Management Journal, 42: 674-686.
29. Davis, J. H., Schoorman, F. D., & Donaldson, L. 1997. Toward a stewardship theory of management. Academy of Management Review, 22: 20-47.
30. Devers, C. E., McNamara, G., Wiseman, R. M., & Arrfelt, M. 2008. Moving closer to the action: Examining compensation design effects on firm risk. Organization Science, 19: 548-566.
31. Doty, D. H., & Glick, W. H. 1994. Typologies as a unique form of theory building: Toward improved understanding and modeling. Academy of Management Review, 19: 230-251.
32. Drummond, H. 1996. The politics of risk: Trials and tribulations of the Taurus project. Journal of Information Technology, 11: 347-357. (Pubitemid 126337010)
33. Eisenhardt, K. M. 1989. Agency theory: An assessment and review. Academy of Management Review, 14: 57-74.
34. Festinger, L. 1957. A theory of cognitive dissonance. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
35. *Fox, F. V., & Staw, B. M. 1979. Trapped administrator: Effects of job insecurity and policy resistance upon commitment to a course of action. Administrative Science Quarterly, 24: 449-471.
36. Garland, H. 1990. Throwing good money after bad: The effect of sunk costs on the decision to escalate commitment to an ongoing project. Journal of Applied Psychology, 75: 728-731.
37. *Garland, H., & Conlon, D. E. 1998. Too close to quit: The role of project completion in maintaining commitment. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 28: 2025-2048.
38. *Garland, H., & Newport, S. 1991. Effects of absolute and relative sunk costs on the decision to persist with a course of action. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 48: 55-69.
39. *Garland, H., Sandefur, C. A., & Rogers, A. C. 1990. De-escalation of commitment in oil exploration: When sunk costs and negative feedback coincide. Journal of Applied Psychology, 75: 721-727.
40. Geyskens, I., Krishnan, R., Steenkamp, J., & Cunha, P. V. 2009. A review and evaluation of meta-analysis practices in management research. Journal of Management, 35: 393-419.
41. Goffman, E. 1959. The presentation of self in everyday life. Garden City, NY: Doubleday.
42. Government Accountability Office. 2009. Troubled asset relief program: Status of government assistance to AIG (GAO-09-975). http://www.gao.gov/new. items/d09975.pdf.
43. Grant, A. M., & Mayer, D. M. 2009. Good soldiers and good actors: Prosocial and impression management motives as interactive predictors of affiliative citizenship behaviors. Journal of Applied Psychology, 94: 900-912.
44. Guler, I. 2007. Throwing good money after bad? Political and institutional influences on sequential decision making in the venture capital industry. Administrative Science Quarterly, 52: 248-285.
45. Hambrick, D. C., Geletkanycz, M. A., & Fredrickson, J. W. 1993. Top executive commitment to the status-quo: Some tests of its determinants. Strategic Management Journal, 14: 401-418.
46. Hantula, D. A., & Crowell, C. R. 1994. Intermittent reinforcement and escalation processes in sequential decision-making: A replication and theoretical analysis. Journal of Organizational Behavior Management, 14: 7-36.
47. *Haunschild, P. R., Davis-Blake, A., & Fichman, M. 1994. Managerial overcommitment in corporate acquisition processes. Organization Science, 5: 528-540.
48. *Heath, C. 1995. Escalation and de-escalation of commitment in response to sunk costs: The role of budgeting in mental accounting. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 62: 38-54.
49. *Heng, C. S., Tan, B. C. Y., & Wei, K. K. 2003. Deescalation of commitment in software projects: Who matters? What matters? Information & Management, 41: 99-110.
50. Hogg, M. A., & Terry, D. J. 2000. Social identity and self-categorization processes in organizational contexts. Academy of Management Review, 25: 121-140.
51. Hull, C. L. 1932. The goal gradient hypothesis and maze learning. Psychological Review, 39: 25-43.
52. Humphrey, S. E., Moon, H., Conlon, D. E., & Hofmann, D. A. 2004. Decision-making and behavior fluidity: How focus on completion and emphasis on safety changes over the course of projects. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 93: 14-27. (Pubitemid 38202755)
53. Hunter, J. E., & Schmidt, F. L. 2004. Methods of metaanalysis: Correcting error and bias in research findings. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
54. Ilgen, D. R., Hollenbeck, J. R., Johnson, M., & Jundt, D. 2005. Teams in organizations: From input-process-output models to IMOI models. In S. Fiske, D. L. Schacter, & A. Kasdin (Eds.), Annual review of psychology, vol. 56: 517-543. Palo Alto, CA: Annual Reviews. (Pubitemid 40300795)
55. Jani, A. 2008. An experimental investigation of factors influencing perceived control over a failing IT project. International Journal of Project Management, 26: 726-732.
56. Janis, I. L. 1972. Victims of groupthink: A psychological study of foreign-policy decisions and fiascoes. Oxford, U.K.: Houghton Mifflin.
57. *Jeffrey, C. 1992. The relation of judgment, personal involvement, and experience in the audit of bank loans. Accounting Review, 67: 802-819.
58. Jensen, J. M., Conlon, D. E., Humphrey, S. E., & Moon, H. 2011. The consequences of completion: How level of completion influences information concealment by decision makers. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 41: 401-428.
59. Jensen, M. C., & Meckling, W. H. 1976. Theory of firm: Managerial behavior, agency costs and ownership structure. Journal of Financial Economics, 3: 305-360.
60. Jones, E. E., & Pittman, T. S. 1982. Toward a general theory of strategic self-presentation. In J. Suls (Ed.), Psychological perspectives on the self: 231-263. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
61. Judge, T. A., Erez, A., & Bono, J. E. 1998. The power of being positive: The relation between positive selfconcept and job performance. Human Performance, 11: 167-187. (Pubitemid 128584506)
62. Kacelnik, A., & Marsh, B. 2002. Cost can increase preference in starlings. Animal Behaviour, 63: 245-250.
63. Kahneman, D., & Tversky, A. 1979. Prospect theory: Analysis of decision under risk. Econometrica, 47: 263-291.
64. Katz, D., & Kahn, R. L. 1966. The social psychology of organizations. New York: Wiley.
65. *Keil, M. In Truex, D. P., & Mixon, R. 1995. The effects of sunk cost and project completion on information technology project escalation. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 42: 372-381.
66. Knight, F. H. 1921. Risk, uncertainty, and profit. Boston: Hart, Schaffner, and Marx; Houghton Mifflin.
67. *Ku, G. 2008. Learning to de-escalate: The effects of regret in escalation of commitment. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 105: 221-232.
68. Kumar, P. 2004. The effects of social comparison on inaction inertia. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 95: 175-185. (Pubitemid 39473688)
69. Lewin, K. 1935. A dynamic theory of personality. New York: McGraw-Hill.
70. Lipsey, M. W., & Wilson, D. B. 2001. Practical metaanalysis. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
71. Loewenstein, G. F., Weber, E. U., Hsee, C. K., & Welch, N. 2001. Risk as feelings. Psychological Bulletin, 127: 267-286. (Pubitemid 33696171)
72. March, J. G., & Shapira, Z. 1987. Managerial perspectives on risk and risk-taking. Management Science, 33: 1404-1418.
73. Mathieu, J., Maynard, M. T., Rapp, T., & Gilson, L. 2008. Team effectiveness 1997-2007: A review of recent advancements and a glimpse into the future. Journal of Management, 34: 410-476.
74. *McCain, B. E. 1986. Continuing investment under conditions of failure: A laboratory study of the limits to escalation. Journal of Applied Psychology, 71: 280.
75. *McNamara, G., Moon, H., & Bromiley, P. 2002. Banking on commitment: Intended and unintended consequences of an organization's attempt to attenuate escalation of commitment. Academy of Management Journal, 45: 443-452.
76. McNamara, G. M., Haleblian, J., & Dykes, B. J. 2008. The performance implications of participating in an acquisition wave: Early mover advantages, bandwagon effects, and the moderating influence of industry characteristics and acquirer tactics. Academy of Management Journal, 51: 113-130.
77. *Moon, H. 2001. Looking forward and looking back: Integrating completion and sunk-cost effects within an escalation-of-commitment progress decision. Journal of Applied Psychology, 86: 104-113. (Pubitemid 33404732)
78. *Moon, H., & Conlon, D. E. 2002. From acclaim to blame: Evidence of a person sensitivity decision bias. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87: 33-42.
79. Myers, D. G., & Lamm, H. 1976. Group polarization phenomenon. Psychological Bulletin, 83: 602-627.
80. Navarro, A. D., & Fantino, E. 2005. The sunk cost effect in pigeons and humans. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 83: 1-13. (Pubitemid 40306158)
81. Noda, T., & Bower, J. L. 1996. Strategy making as iterated processes of resource allocation. Strategic Management Journal, 17: 159-192.
82. *Northcraft, G. B., & Neale, M. A. 1986. Opportunity costs and the framing of resource-allocation decisions. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 37: 348-356.
83. Nunes, J. C., & Dreze, X. 2006. The endowed progress effect: How artificial advancement increases effort. Journal of Consumer Research, 32: 504-512. (Pubitemid 43616962)
84. Prentice, D. A., & Miller, D. T. 1992. When small effects are impressive. Psychological Bulletin, 112: 160-164.
85. Roodhooft, F., & Warlop, L. 1999. On the role of sunk costs and asset specificity in outsourcing decisions: A research note. Accounting, Organizations and Society, 24: 363-369.
86. Rosenthal, R. 1979. The file drawer problem and tolerance for null results. Psychological Bulletin, 86: 638-641.
87. Ross, J., & Staw, B. M. 1986. Expo 86: An escalation prototype. Administrative Science Quarterly, 31: 274-297.
88. Ross, J., & Staw, B. M. 1993. Organizational escalation and exit: Lessons from the Shoreham nuclear power plant. Academy of Management Journal, 36: 701-732.
89. Ryan, A. M., Brutus, S., Greguras, G. J., & Hakel, M. D. 2000. Receptivity to assessment-based feedback for management development. Journal of Management Development, 19: 252.
90. Savage, L. J. 1954. The foundation of statistics. New York: Wiley.
91. *Schaubroeck, J., & Davis, E. 1994. Prospect theory predictions when escalation is not the only chance to recover sunk costs. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 57: 59-82.
92. *Schmidt, J. B., & Calantone, R. J. 2002. Escalation of commitment during new product development. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 30: 103-118. (Pubitemid 40815789)
93. Schoemaker, P. J. H. 1982. The expected utility model: Its variants, purposes, evidence and limitations. Journal of Economic Literature, 20: 529-563.
94. *Schoorman, F. D., Mayer, R. C., Douglas, C. A., & Hetrick, C. T. 1994. Escalation of commitment and the framing effect: An empirical investigation. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 24: 509-528.
95. *Schulz-Hardt, S., Thurow-Kröning, B., & Frey, D. 2009. Preference-based escalation: A new interpretation for the responsibility effect in escalating commitment and entrapment. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 108: 175-186.
96. *Schulz, A. K. D., & Cheng, M. M. 2002. Persistence in capital budgeting reinvestment decisions - personal responsibility antecedent and information asymmetry moderator: A note. Accounting and Finance, 42(1): 73-86.
97. *Seibert, S. E., & Goltz, S. M. 2001. Comparison of allocations by individuals and interacting groups in an escalation of commitment situation. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 31: 134-156.
98. Skinner, B. F. 1953. Science and human behavior. New York: Macmillan.
99. Solinger, O. N., van Olffen, W., & Roe, R. A. 2008. Beyond the three-component model of organizational commitment. Journal of Applied Psychology, 93: 70-83.
100. *Soman, D. 2001. The mental accounting of sunk time costs: Why time is not like money. Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, 14: 169-185. (Pubitemid 33736212)
101. *Staw, B. M. 1976. Knee-deep in the big muddy: A study of escalating commitment to a chosen course of action. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 16: 27-44.
102. Staw, B. M. 1997. The escalation of commitment: An update and appraisal. In Z. Shapira (Ed.), Organizational decision making: 191-215. New York: Cambridge University Press.
103. Staw, B. M., & Ross, J. 1978. Commitment to a policy decision: A multi-theoretical perspective. Administrative Science Quarterly, 23: 40-64.
104. Staw, B. M., & Ross, J. 1987. Behavior in escalation situations: Antecedents, prototypes, and solutions. In L. L. Cummings & B. M. Staw (Eds.), Research in organizational behavior, vol. 9: 39-78. Greenwich, CT: JAI.
105. Stein, J. C. 1997. Internal capital markets and the competition for corporate resources. Journal of Finance, 52: 111-133. (Pubitemid 127343965)
106. Stern, I., & Henderson, A. D. 2004. Within-business diversification in technology-intensive industries. Strategic Management Journal, 25: 487-505.
107. *Tan, H. T., & Yates, J. F. 2002. Financial budgets and escalation effects. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 87: 300-322.
108. Terry, D. J., & Hogg, M. A. 1996. Group norms and the attitude-behavior relationship: A role for group identification. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 22: 776-793.
109. Tetlock, P. E. 1992. The impact of accountability on judgment and choice: Toward a social contingency model. In M. P. Zanna (Eds.), Advances in experimental social psychology, vol. 25: 331-376. New York: Academic.
110. Thaler, R. 1980. Toward a positive theory of consumer choice. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, 1: 39-60.
111. Thaler, R. 1985. Mental accounting and consumer choice. Marketing Science, 4(3): 199-214.
112. *Tosi, H. L., Katz, K. P., & Gomez-Mejia, L. R. 1997. Disaggregating the agency contract: Effects of monitoring, incentive alignment, and term in office on agent decision making. Academy of Management Journal, 40: 584-602.
113. Wanous, J. P., Sullivan, S. E., & Malinak, J. 1989. The role of judgment calls in meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 74: 259-264.
114. Westphal, J. D., & Graebner, M. E. 2010. A matter of appearances: How corporate leaders manage the impressions of financial analysts about the conduct of their boards. Academy of Management Journal, 53: 15-44.
115. Whitener, E. M. 1990. Confusion of confidence intervals and credibility intervals in meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 75: 315-321.
116. *Whyte, G. 1991. Diffusion of responsibility: Effects on the escalation tendency. Journal of Applied Psychology, 76: 408-415.
117. *Wong, K. F. E., & Kwong, J. Y. 2007. The role of anticipated regret in escalation of commitment. Journal of Applied Psychology, 92: 545-554.
118. *Wong, K. F. E., Yik, M., & Kwong, J. Y. 2006. Understanding the emotional aspects of escalation of commitment: The role of negative affect. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91: 282-297. (Pubitemid 43486635)
119. Zauberman, G. 2003. The intertemporal dynamics of consumer lock-in. Journal of Consumer Research, 30: 405-419. (Pubitemid 38118560)
120. *Zhang, L., & Baumeister, R. F. 2006. Your money or your self-esteem: Threatened egotism promotes costly entrapment in losing endeavors. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 32: 881-893. (Pubitemid 43839333)