While existing literature has examined the positive effects of persistence narratives on motivation and achievement, a significant gap persists regarding their potential negative consequences. Particularly, the tendency to form unwarranted judgments about individuals who do not persist in the face of constraints remains unexplored. This study fills this research gap by investigating how emphasizing persistence influences judgments about constrained individuals, challenging assumptions about attending to constraint information robustly.

The study participants range from children aged 5-12 years old to college students. Participants are exposed to narratives about characters facing constraints and making choices. Child participants were randomly assigned to view all female or male characters, while college students viewed all female characters. Each participant was presented with different sets of stories with varying themes of persistence (successful or failed) or the absence of persistence. Afterwards, participants reasoned about a final constrained actor's preference for a lower-quality toy. The results revealed a consistent trend across age groups, with participants inclined to infer a preference for lower-quality options among constrained individuals after exposure to persistence narratives, irrespective of outcomes. This suggests a robust influence of persistence narratives on preference judgments, emphasizing the perceived causal link between preferences and observable effort.

For educators and parents, the findings underscore the importance of carefully selecting narratives shared with children, as these narratives shape perceptions of constraints and choices in others. Balancing narratives of success and persistence while acknowledging external constraints can foster empathy and inclusivity. Consider a classroom scenario where a teacher emphasizes stories of perseverance to motivate students. While such narratives can inspire effort, they might inadvertently lead to biased judgments about peers facing challenges regarding motivation. By fostering a nuanced understanding of success and effort, educators can create a supportive environment where all students feel valued and capable of overcoming obstacles. Moreover, the study highlights the importance of the framing of situations and narrative manipulation in shaping social inferences, which offers valuable insights for EPIC's research.

You can learn more about this topic here: https://doi.org/10.1037/xge0001428

This post is written by Tristin Yun.

Reference:
Amemiya, J., Heyman, G. D., & Walker, C. M. (2023). Emphasizing others’ persistence can promote unwarranted social inferences in children and adults. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 152(10), 2977–2988. https://doi.org/10.1037/xge0001428