Abstract
Although scholars have identified a few antecedents of inaction inertia, scant attention has been given to the sense of power. Therefore, the present study connects consumers’ sense of power with inaction inertia, and investigates the mechanism underlying the effects of consumers’ sense of power and psychological ownership on inaction inertia from the perspective of endowment effect. Three experiments and one survey were conducted to test our predictions. Studies 1a and 1b found that consumers with low (vs. high) sense of power showed higher inaction inertia, whether state or trait sense of power. Study 2 found that psychological ownership moderated the relationship between sense of power and inaction inertia, and the valuation was an underlying driver of this effect. Furthermore, study 3 revealed the chain mediating role of both valuation and anticipated regret in the impact of sense of power and psychological ownership on inaction inertia. Theoretical and practical implications, and future research directions are discussed.
Similar content being viewed by others
Data availability
Data is available upon request.
Notes
We first translated all items that were originally in English into Chinese. Discrepancies in the translation were resolved by discussion. To establish semantic equivalence, we then translated the Chinese version back into English and modified it until the authors agreed that the back translation matched the original meaning of the English version.
Following the suggestion of an anonymous reviewer, we run the same analyses without control variables, the finding remained unchanged.
Following the suggestion of an anonymous reviewer, we run the same analyses without control variables, the finding remained unchanged.
Following the suggestion of an anonymous reviewer, we run the same analyses without control variables, the finding remained unchanged.
Following the suggestion of an anonymous reviewer, we run the same analyses without control variables, the finding remained unchanged.
Following the suggestion of an anonymous reviewer, we run the same analyses without control variables, the finding remained unchanged.
References
Anderson, C., & Galinsky, A. D. (2006). Power, optimism, and risk-taking. European Journal of Social Psychology, 36(4), 511–536. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.324
Anderson, C., John, O. P., & Keltner, D. (2012). The personal sense of power. Journal of Personality, 80(2), 313–344. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6494.2011.00734.x
Arkes, H. R., Kung, Y.-H., & Hutzel, L. (2002). Regret, valuation, and inaction inertia. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 87(2), 371–385. https://doi.org/10.1006/obhd.2001.2978
Bagga, C. K., Bendle, N., & Cotte, J. (2019). Object valuation and non-ownership possession: How renting and borrowing impact willingness-to-pay. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 47(1), 97–117. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-018-0596-3
Beggan, J. K. (1992). On the social nature of nonsocial perception: The mere ownership effect. Journal of Personality & Social Psychology, 62(2), 229–237. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.62.2.229
Belk, R. W. (1988). Possessions and the extended self. Journal of Consumer Research, 15(2), 139–168. https://doi.org/10.1086/209154
Bornschein, R., Schmidt, L., & Maier, E. (2020). The effect of consumers’ perceived power and risk in digital information privacy: The example of cookie notices. Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 39(2), 135–154. https://doi.org/10.1177/0743915620902143
Brislin, R. W. (1970). Back-translation for cross-cultural research. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 1(3), 185–216. https://doi.org/10.1177/135910457000100301
Carmon, Z., & Ariely, D. (2000). Focusing on the forgone: How value can appear so different to buyers and sellers. Journal of Consumer Research, 27(3), 360–370. https://doi.org/10.1086/317590
Chatterjee, P., Irmak, C., & Rose, R. L. (2013). The endowment effect as self-enhancement in response to threat. Journal of Consumer Research, 40(3), 460–476. https://doi.org/10.1086/671344
Chen, J., Hui, L. S., Yu, T., Feldman, G., Zeng, S., Ching, T. L., Ng, C. H., Wu, K. W., Yuen, C. M., Lau, T. K., Cheng, B. L., & Ng, K. W. (2021). Foregone opportunities and choosing not to act: Replications of inaction inertia effect. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 12(3), 333–345. https://doi.org/10.1177/1948550619900570
Choi, C., & Mattila, A. S. (2016). The effects of other customers’ dress style on customers’ approach behaviors: The moderating role of sense of power. Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, 57(2), 211–218. https://doi.org/10.1177/1938965515619228
Collard, P., Walford, A., Vernon, L., Itagaki, F., & Turk, D. (2020). The relationship between endowment and ownership effects in memory across cultures. Consciousness and Cognition, 78, 102865. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.concog.2019.102865
Cui, N., Xu, L., & Xie, W. (2016). Which one makes you regret, to do or not to do? The effect of self-regulatory mode on inaction inertia. Acta Psychologica Sinica, 48(4), 423–434.
Deng, M., Zheng, M., & Guinote, A. (2018). When does power trigger approach motivation? Threats and the role of perceived control in the power domain. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 12(5), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12390
de Zavala, A. G., Lantos, D., & Bowden, D. (2017). Yoga poses increase subjective energy and state self-esteem in comparison to ‘power poses.’ Frontiers in Psychology, 8, 752. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00752
Dommer, S. L., & Swaminathan, V. (2013). Explaining the endowment effect through ownership: The role of identity, gender, and self-threat. Journal of Consumer Research, 39(5), 1034–1050. https://doi.org/10.1086/666737
Dubois, D., Rucker, D. D., & Galinsky, A. D. (2012). Super size me: Product size as a signal of status. Journal of Consumer Research, 38(6), 1047–1062. https://doi.org/10.1086/661890
Durso, G. R. O., Briñol, P., & Petty, R. E. (2016). From power to inaction: Ambivalence gives pause to the powerful. Psychological Science, 27(12), 1660–1666. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797616669947
Fast, N. J., Gruenfeld, D. H., Sivanathan, N., & Galinsky, A. D. (2009). Illusory control: A generative force behind power’s far-reaching effects. Psychological Science (0956–7976), 20(4), 502–508. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02311.x
Foster, C. C., & Diab, D. L. (2017). To accept or not to accept a job offer: Examining inaction inertia in an organizational context. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 47(11), 634–645. https://doi.org/10.1111/jasp.12468
Fuchs, C., Prandelli, E., & Schreier, M. (2010). The psychological effects of empowerment strategies on consumers’ product demand. Journal of Marketing, 74(1), 65–79. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.74.1.65
Füller, J., Mühlbacher, H., Matzler, K., & Jawecki, G. (2009). Consumer empowerment through internet-based co-creation. Journal of Management Information Systems, 26(3), 71–102. https://doi.org/10.2753/MIS0742-1222260303
Galang, C. M., & Obhi, S. S. (2019). Social power and frontal alpha asymmetry. Cognitive Neuroscience, 10(1), 44–56. https://doi.org/10.1080/17588928.2018.1504763
Galinsky, A. D., Gruenfeld, D. H., & Magee, J. C. (2003). From power to action. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 85(3), 453–466. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.85.3.453
Gasper, K., & Bramesfeld, K. (2006). Imparting wisdom: Magda Arnold’s contribution to research on emotion and motivation. Cognition & Emotion, 20(7), 1001–1026. https://doi.org/10.1080/02699930600616122
Georgesen, J. C., & Harris, M. J. (1998). Why’s my boss always holding me down? A meta-analysis of power effects on performance evaluations. Personality & Social Psychology Review (lawrence Erlbaum Associates), 2(3), 184. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327957pspr0203_3
Gineikiene, J., Schlegelmilch, B. B., & Auruskeviciene, V. (2017). “Ours” or “theirs”? Psychological ownership and domestic products preferences. Journal of Business Research, 72, 93–103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2016.11.003
Hayes, A. F. (2013). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: A regression-based approach. The Guilford Press.
Hsu, D. Y., Huang, L., Nordgren, L. F., Rucker, D. D., & Galinsky, A. D. (2015). The music of power: Perceptual and behavioral consequences of powerful music. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 6(1), 75–83. https://doi.org/10.1177/1948550614542345
Jia, Y., Wyer, R. S., Jr., & Shen, H. (2021). “Will you?” versus “can you?”: Verbal framing moderates the effect of feelings of power on consumers’ reactions to waiting. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied, 27(2), 213–227. https://doi.org/10.1037/xap0000336
Jiang, Y., Zhan, L., & Rucker, D. D. (2014). Power and action orientation: Power as a catalyst for consumer switching behavior. Journal of Consumer Research, 41(1), 183–196. https://doi.org/10.1086/675723
Jiang, H., Liu, B., & Sun, P. (2018). The influence of power on consumer behavior and its theoretical explanation. Chinese Journal of Advances in Psychological Science, 26(1), 156–168. https://doi.org/10.3724/SP.J.1042.2018.00156
Jin, F., & Zhu, H. (2016). Consumers’ power states and impulsive buying. Acta Psychologica Sinica, 48(7), 880–890. https://doi.org/10.3724/SP.J.1041.2016.00880
Kahneman, D., & Miller, D. T. (1986). Norm theory: Comparing reality to its alternatives. Psychological Review, 93, 136–153. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.93.2.136
Kahneman, D., & Tversky, A. (1979). Prospect theory: An analysis of decision under risk. Econometrica, 47(2), 263–291. https://doi.org/10.2307/1914185
Keltner, D., Gruenfeld, D. H., & Anderson, C. (2003). Power, approach, and inhibition. Psychological Review, 110(2), 265–284. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295x.110.2.265
Kim, J., Almanza, B., Ghiselli, R., Neal, J., & Sydnor, S. (2018). What role does sense of power play in consumers’ decision making of risky food consumption while dining out? Journal of Foodservice Business Research, 21(1), 106–119. https://doi.org/10.1080/15378020.2017.1320931
Kirk, C. P., Peck, J., & Swain, S. D. (2018). Property lines in the mind: Consumers’ psychological ownership and their territorial responses. Journal of Consumer Research, 45(1), 148–168. https://doi.org/10.1093/jcr/ucx111
Körner, R., Petersen, L.-E., & Schütz, A. (2021). Do expansive or contractive body postures affect feelings of self-worth? High power poses impact state self-esteem. Current Psychology: A Journal for Diverse Perspectives on Diverse Psychological Issues, 40(8), 4112–4124. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-019-00371-1
Kraus, M. W., Chen, S., & Keltner, D. (2011). The power to be me: Power elevates self-concept consistency and authenticity. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 47(5), 974–980. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2011.03.017
Krijnen, J. M. T., Zeelenberg, M., Breugelmans, S. M., & Putten, M. (2020). Inaction inertia in retirement saving. Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, 33(1), 52–62. https://doi.org/10.1002/bdm.2145
Kumar, P. (2004). The effects of social comparison on inaction inertia. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 95(2), 175–185. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2004.06.004
Li, D., & Atkinson, L. (2020). The role of psychological ownership in consumer happiness. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 37(6), 629–638. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCM-09-2019-3420
Liu, H.-H., & Chou, H.-Y. (2018). Promotional formats and inaction inertia. Journal of Economic Psychology, 66, 22–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joep.2018.04.001
Liu, H., & Chou, H. (2019). The effects of promotional package frames and price strategies on inaction inertia. Psychology & Marketing, 36(3), 214–228. https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.21173
Liu, S. Q., & Mattila, A. S. (2017). Airbnb: Online targeted advertising, sense of power, and consumer decisions. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 60, 33–41. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2016.09.012
Liu, T.-C., Cheng, T., & Ni, F.-Y. (2011). How consumers respond to the behavior of missing a free gift promotion: Inaction inertia effect on products offered as free gifts. Journal of Social Psychology, 151(3), 361–381. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224545.2010.483698
Lu, J., Jia, H., Xie, X., & Wang, Q. (2016). Missing the best opportunity; Who can seize the next one? Agents show less inaction inertia than personal decision makers. Journal of Economic Psychology, 54, 100–112. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joep.2016.03.004
Lu, L., Liu, J., & Zhao, N. (2017). Why employees stay: The roles of psychological ownership, territoriality and work relationship closeness in affecting employee turnover intention. Frontiers of Business Research in China, 11(2), 186–220. https://doi.org/10.1186/s11782-017-0010-x
Maddux, W. W., Yang, H., Falk, C., Adam, H., Adair, W., Endo, Y., Carmon, Z., & Heine, S. J. (2010). For whom is parting with possessions more painful? Cultural differences in the endowment effect. Psychological Science, 21(12), 1910–1917. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797610388818
Morewedge, C. K., Shu, L. L., Gilbert, D. T., & Wilson, T. D. (2009). Bad riddance or good rubbish? Ownership and not loss aversion causes the endowment effect. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 45(4), 947–951. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2009.05.014
Mourali, M., & Nagpal, A. (2013). The powerful select, the powerless reject: Power’s influence in decision strategies. Journal of Business Research, 66(7), 874–880. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2011.12.005
Mourali, M., Yang, Z., Pons, F., & Hassay, D. (2018). Consumer power and choice deferral: The role of anticipated regret. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 35(1), 81–99. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijresmar.2017.09.004
Pamplona, G. S. P., Salgado, J. A. D., Staempfli, P., Seifritz, E., Gassert, R., & Ionta, S. (2022). Illusory body ownership affects the cortical response to vicarious somatosensation. Cerebral Cortex, 32(2), 312–328. https://doi.org/10.1093/cercor/bhab210
Peck, J., & Shu, S. B. (2009). The effect of mere touch on perceived ownership. Journal of Consumer Research, 36(3), 434–447. https://doi.org/10.1086/598614
Pierce, J. L., Kostova, T., & Dirks, K. T. (2001). Toward a theory of psychological ownership in organizations. Academy of Management Review, 26(2), 298–310. https://doi.org/10.5465/AMR.2001.4378028
Pike, B. E., & Galinsky, A. D. (2020). Power leads to action because it releases the psychological brakes on action. Current Opinion in Psychology, 33, 91–94. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2019.06.028
Popelnukha, A., Weng, Q. (Derek), Ali, A., & Atamba, C. (2021). When do low‐power customers complain? The joint effects of chronic sense of personal power and complaint success on complaining intentions. Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 20(1), 101–118https://doi.org/10.1002/cb.1859
Raghubir, P. (2004). Free gift with purchase: Promoting or discounting the brand? Journal of Consumer Psychology, 14(1–2), 181–186. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327663jcp1401&2_20
Rucker, D. D., Galinsky, A. D., & Dubois, D. (2012). Power and consumer behavior: How power shapes who and what consumers value. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 22(3), 352–368. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcps.2011.06.001
See, K. E., Morrison, E. W., Rothman, N. B., & Soll, J. B. (2011). The detrimental effects of power on confidence, advice taking, and accuracy. Organizational Behavior & Human Decision Processes, 116(2), 272–285. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2011.07.006
Seo, B.-G., & Park, D.-H. (2019). The effect of message framing on security behavior in online services: Focusing on the shift of time orientation via psychological ownership. Computers in Human Behavior, 93, 357–369. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2018.12.035
Septianto, F., Nallaperuma, K., Bandyopadhyay, A., & Dolan, R. (2020). Proud powerful, grateful powerless: The interactive effect of power and emotion on gift giving. European Journal of Marketing, 54(7), 1703–1729. https://doi.org/10.1108/EJM-10-2018-0727
Sevdalis, N., Harvey, N., & Yip, M. (2006). Regret triggers inaction inertia–But which regret and how? British Journal of Social Psychology, 45(4), 839–853. https://doi.org/10.1348/014466605X84790
Smith, P. K., & Trope, Y. (2006). You focus on the forest when you’re in charge of the trees: Power priming and abstract information processing. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 90(4), 578–596. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.90.4.578
Su, S., Chen, R., & Huang, J. (2013). The regulation of inaction inertia: From the forward-looking perspective of multiple reference points. Acta Psychologica Sinica, 45(12), 1393–1409. https://doi.org/10.3724/SP.J.1041.2013.01393
Terris, L. G., & Tykocinski, O. E. (2016). Inaction inertia in international negotiations: The consequences of missed opportunities. British Journal of Political Science, 46(3), 701–717. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007123414000118
Tsiros, M. (2009). Releasing the regret lock: Consumer response to new alternatives after a sale. Journal of Consumer Research, 35(6), 1039–1059. https://doi.org/10.1086/593698
Tykocinski, O. E., & Pittman, T. S. (1998). The consequences of doing nothing: Inaction inertia as avoidance of anticipated counterfactual regret. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 75(3), 607–616. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.75.3.607
Tykocinski, O. E., & Pittman, T. S. (2001). Product aversion following a missed opportunity: Price contrast or avoidance of anticipated regret? Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 23(3), 149–156. https://doi.org/10.1207/153248301750433867
Tykocinski, O. E., Pittman, T. S., & Tuttle, E. E. (1995). Inaction inertia: Foregoing future benefits as a result of an initial failure to act. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 68(5), 793–803. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.68.5.793
van Putten, M., Zeelenberg, M., & van Dijk, E. (2007). Decoupling the past from the present attenuates inaction inertia. Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, 20(1), 65–79. https://doi.org/10.1002/bdm.541
van Putten, M., Zeelenberg, M., & van Dijk, E. (2013a). How consumers deal with missed discounts: Transaction decoupling, action orientation and inaction inertia. Journal of Economic Psychology, 38, 104–110. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joep.2012.09.008
van Putten, M., Zeelenberg, M., van Dijk, E., & Tykocinski, O. E. (2013b). Inaction inertia. European Review of Social Psychology, 24(1), 123–159. https://doi.org/10.1080/10463283.2013.841481
Van Putten, M., Zeelenberg, M., & Van Dijk, E. (2009). Dealing with missed opportunities: Action vs state orientation moderates inaction inertia. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 45(4), 808–815. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2009.05.011
Wang, C. X., Minton, E. A., & Zhang, J. (2020). Sense of power: Policy insights for encouraging consumers’ healthy food choice. Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 39(2), 188–204. https://doi.org/10.1177/0743915620902148
Weick, M., Guinote, A., & Wilkinson, D. (2011). Lack of power enhances visual perceptual discrimination. Canadian Journal of Experimental Psychology = Revue Canadienne de Psychologie Experimentale, 65(3), 208–213. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0024258
Ye, B., & Wen, Z. (2013). A discussion on testing methods for mediated moderation models: Discrimination and integration. Acta Psychologica Sinica, 45(9), 1050–1060. https://doi.org/10.3724/SP.J.1041.2013.01050
Zeelenberg, M. (1999). Anticipated regret, expected feedback and behavioral decision making. Journal of Behavioral Decision Making, 12(2), 93–106. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1099-0771(199906)12:2%3c93::AID-BDM311%3e3.0.CO;2-S
Zeelenberg, M., & Pieters, R. (2007). A theory of regret regulation 1.0. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 17(1), 3–18. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327663jcp1701_3
Zeelenberg, M., & van Putten, M. (2005). The dark side of discounts: An inaction inertia perspective on the post-promotion dip. Psychology & Marketing, 22(8), 611–622. https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.20076
Zeelenberg, M., Nijstad, B. A., van Putten, M., & van Dijk, E. (2006). Inaction inertia, regret, and valuation: A closer look. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 101(1), 89–104. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2005.11.004
Zhang, S., Liu, H., & Shi, R. (2016). The dark side of “doing the right thing”: Regulatory mode predicts the inaction inertia effect. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 46(11), 655–662. https://doi.org/10.1111/jasp.12393
Zou, D., Jin, L., He, Y., & Xu, Q. (2014). The effect of the sense of power on Chinese consumers’ uniqueness-seeking behavior. Journal of International Consumer Marketing, 26(1), 14–28. https://doi.org/10.1080/08961530.2014.848078
Funding
The present research was supported by the Program of National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.71701129).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
Huaiyong Wang designed the research; Siyi Yue analyzed the data and wrote the first draft; all authors made significant suggestions to improve the quality of the paper. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Ethical approval
The study was carried out in accordance with the recommendations of the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. Approval was granted by the Ethics Committee of the author’s university. All subjects gave written informed consent in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki.
Informed consent
Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.
Conflict of interest
On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author states that there is no conflict of interest.
Additional information
Publisher's note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Yue, S., Wang, H. The effect of sense of power on inaction inertia: From the perspective of endowment effect. Curr Psychol 42, 29071–29089 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-03983-2
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-03983-2