scholarly journals Reconciling Loss Aversion and Gain Seeking in Judged Emotions

2021 ◽  
pp. 096372142199204
Author(s):  
Barbara A. Mellers ◽  
Siyuan Yin ◽  
Jonathan Z. Berman
Keyword(s):  
Loss Aversion ◽  
Reference Point ◽  
Emotional Reactions ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Negative Change ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
The Status ◽  
Positive Feelings ◽  
Negative Feelings

Is the pain of a loss greater in magnitude than the pleasure of a comparable gain? Studies that compare positive feelings about a gain with negative feelings about a comparable loss have found mixed answers to this question. The pain of a loss can be greater than, less than, or equal to the pleasure of a comparable gain. We offer a new approach to test hedonic loss aversion. This method uses emotional reactions to the reference point, a positive change, and a negative change. When we manipulated the reference point (i.e., pleasurable and painful), two distinct patterns emerged. Pain surpassed pleasure (loss aversion) when the reference point was positive, and pleasure exceeded pain (gain seeking) when the reference point was negative. A reference-dependent version of prospect theory accounts for the results. If the carriers of utility are changes from a reference point—not necessarily the status quo—both loss aversion and gain seeking are predicted. Loss aversion and gain seeking can be reconciled if you take the starting point into account.

Unsticking the status quo

2017 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 122-141 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brittany Harker Martin
Keyword(s):  
Loss Aversion ◽  
Reference Point ◽  
Cognitive Biases ◽  
Social Systems ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Systematic Change ◽  
Behavioral Strategy ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Status ◽  
Chi Square Analysis

Purpose Managerial mindset and cognitive bias can be barriers to any transformation strategy. In the case of telework, most employees express willingness to telework, yet, few firms formally enable it during regular business hours. The status quo is a daily commute to the traditional workplace. The purpose of this paper is to test framing interventions designed to harness cognitive biases through choice architecture. Design/methodology/approach Drawing upon behavioral strategy and prospect theory, this paper presents two studies: quasi-experiments with 146 senior business students and experiments in the field (replication using random assignment and extension) with 84 senior decision makers. Both studies use a one-way between-subjects design and chi-square analysis. Findings Findings support the proposition that, although cognitive biases can act as barriers to transformation, they can be re-framed through strategic interventions. Specifically, in both studies, there was a drastic increase in adoption simply by changing the way the choice was presented. Findings in the lab were cross-validated in the field. Observed shifts in preferences provide evidence that embedding the right reference point within communications can frame a decision choice more favorably. Findings also support that a bias for an implicitly perceived status quo can be overruled through an explicitly stated reference point. Research limitations/implications It is an assumption of behavioral strategy that most individuals simply respond to the gains/loss framing without being influenced by other psychological or contextual factors, and though these effects dissipate through aggregation, it is a limitation nonetheless. Indeed, using an individual construct to explain an organizational phenomenon is a well-debated topic in the field of strategy, with proponents on both sides. The distinguishing factor, here, is that behavioral strategists are only interested in results at the aggregated level. Practical implications Practitioners attempting to roll out telework adoption, or any transformation, now have proven strategies for designing frames of reference that intervene against and harness the power of loss aversion and the status quo. Social implications This paper measures micro processes that have an effect at the macro level. It explains systematic aversion to adoption as an aggregation of decision-making behavior that is seemingly subconscious. In doing so, it highlights the impact of bounded rationality perpetuated through social systems, while measuring effective interventions designed to make systematic behavior more predictable. Originality/value A novel contribution is made in designing/testing a new frame for systematic resistance to change that frames the status quo as the losing prospect. In this frame, the perceived loss is in the choice not to change, and loss aversion proves to be an effective tool for facilitating systematic change.

Prospect Theory, Loss Aversion, and Political Behavior

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesco Passarelli ◽  
Alessandro Del Ponte
Keyword(s):  
Prospect Theory ◽  
Expected Utility ◽  
Loss Aversion ◽  
Reference Point ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Status Quo Bias ◽  
Reflection Effect ◽  
Voting Rules ◽  
Current State ◽  
The Status

Prospect theory introduces several anomalies in the behavior of rational agents, including loss aversion, the reflection effect, probability weighting, and the certainty effect. Loss aversion occurs relative to the current state of the world, called reference point. Being loss averse causes people to prefer the current state of affairs above and beyond the expected utility that comes from a risky political change, engendering a status quo bias. Yet, bias is asymmetric due to the reflection effect: people are too tepid toward advantageous platforms or candidates, whereas they are not critical enough of detrimental policies or bad politicians. Both rich and poor citizens take similar stances on nonpartisan issues (such as national defense): this happens because they evaluate uncertain policy changes relative to a reference point. Citizens welcome radical political platforms with greater enthusiasm than incremental proposals. Generally, under prospect theory societal conflict is smoother than under expected utility theory. Older societies are more prone to preserving the status quo than younger ones. These properties also affect the choice of voting rules. Loss aversion induces people to prefer more prudent voting rules and preserve the status quo. Hence, agents favor higher majority thresholds or even unanimity over simple majority in constitutional choice. The status quo bias supports the persistence of policy cycles, with prolonged drifts in one direction before a trend reversal. In sum, loss aversion and other anomalies pinpointed by prospect theory offer insightful predictions with which to study political phenomena.

scholarly journals Anarchist Criminology

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Václav Walach ◽  
Mark Seis ◽  
Stanislav Vysotsky
Keyword(s):  
Status Quo ◽  
Critical Study ◽  
New Approach ◽  
The Status

Anarchist criminology is not a new approach to the critical study of harm, crime, and criminalization, but it has been largely overlooked and gained serious impetus only in recent years. This interview features two scholars who have been at the forefront of this development. Mark Seis co-edited the volumes Contemporary Anarchist Criminology (Nocella, Seis and Shantz 2018) and Classic Writings in Anarchist Criminology (Nocella, Seis, and Shantz 2020), which bring together some of the key texts that utilize anarchist theorizing to challenge the status quo, both in society and in criminology. Stanislav Vysotsky has recently published his book American Antifa (Vysotsky 2021), where he explores, inter alia, militant antifascism as informal policing. The interview emerged somewhat unconventionally. Stanislav was interviewed first on March 22, 2021. The resulting transcript was edited and sent to Mark who was unable to join the online meeting due to technical difficulties. I received his answers on May 24. The following is a slightly shortened and edited version of the interview.

To lead or not to lead: that is the (courageous) question

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 55-58
Author(s):  
Javier Bajer
Keyword(s):  
Direct Observation ◽  
Side Effect ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Leadership Skills ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The World ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to challenge the constructs regularly used by organisations around the world for the development of leadership. Design/methodology/approach This is an opinion piece based on direct observation of hundreds of organisations over the years. Findings The regular approaches used for the development of leadership skills in organisations have consistently failed to deliver against its promise. Moreover, it is often the case that organisations pursue new “solutions” to bridge the leadership gap, often to discover that their new approach not only failed to develop the skills needed but also had the side effect of distracting vast amounts of attention. This paper describes what, if not the various taxonomies that describe, “good leadership” looks like really and how it delivers sustainable and effective leadership transformation. Originality/value This piece challenges the status quo, offering a more powerful way of connecting people with the purpose of their work, increasing the impact that individual leadership could have in the creation of value for all stakeholders, including themselves.

scholarly journals Suwerenność państw w procesie integracji europejskiej

2018 ◽  
pp. 7-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Włodzimierz MALENDOWSKI
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
International Organizations ◽  
Union Member ◽  
The European Union ◽  
New Approach ◽  
International Environment ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
The Status ◽  
Rules And Principles ◽  
European Union Member States

The paper concerns an attempt to determine the status of European Union member states. It takes as its starting point the statement that the EU’s organizational structure provides for more than a confederation of states but less than a federation. At the present stage of the EU’s development a unique organization has been established that has not predecessor in the standards of international organizations. This is accompanied with a new approach to the interpretation of the nature of sovereignty of integrating European states, which is connected with intensifying processes of decomposition and the loosening of sovereign control by states over their territories and populations. States achieve their sovereign interests within the framework of international structures. They can also voluntarily restrict their sovereign rights on the basis of the commonly accepted rules and principles of international organizations. In this way they assign a comparative degree of state authorities’ competencies to these organizations. As a consequence, numerous issues that were formerly regulated by states are increasingly more often solved by means of corporate operations. This naturally leads to the states’ opening to the international environment without any threat to their sovereignty. The process of integration in Europe has not resulted in sovereignty of the European Union itself. Sovereignty remains an attribute of states. European states maintain their ability to

scholarly journals The Dystopian Near-Future in Contemporary British Drama

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 72-88
Author(s):  
Trish Reid
Keyword(s):  
Real World ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Cultural Discourses ◽  
British Drama ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
The Status ◽  
Raymond Williams ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Fear And Anxiety ◽  
Near Future

Abstract This paper addresses the theme of fear and anxiety in contemporary drama and performance through a consideration of the trope of the dystopian near-future as it has re-occurred in a significant number of recent British plays. It takes as its starting point the contention that the prevalence and persistence of this motif makes it worthy of investigation. The plays under discussion do not re-inscribe socio-political problems, or the status quo, by pretending to be objective records of the real world. Instead they create alternative fictional near-future worlds, exploratory dystopias that deliberately perform anxiety-inducing and estranging critical interrogations of current cultural and political concerns. Drawing on the work of Raymond Williams this essay seeks to show that the critical and emotional insights offered by these play-worlds are made possible only through the process of our pondering their strangeness. Each example stages its own particular disruption of theatrical realism and in so doing engages critically both with the British realist theatrical tradition, and also with the wider cultural discourses about ‘truth’ and ‘reality’ that haunt our contemporary neoliberal moment and the emotions these discourses produce.

scholarly journals Efek Pemikatan (Attraction Effect) dan Bias Status Quo Sebuah Eksperimen dalam Perilaku Pengambilan Keputusan Portofolio Keuangan

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 215-224
Author(s):  
Bayu Laksma Pradana
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Observation ◽  
Reference Point ◽  
Choice Behavior ◽  
Rational Choice Theory ◽  
Choice Theory ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Attraction Effect ◽  
Individual Choice ◽  
Decoy Effect ◽  
The Status

The reference dependent preference plays a significant role in individual choice behavior. Introducing a third option which is asymmetrical dominated to the dominating option can influence one’s decision. The status quo, endowment and attraction or decoy effect are the main noises. Such noises are  proof to counter the rational choice theory. This paper tries to observe the status quo and decoy effect. Existence of those two effects are examined in experimental observation with 32 respondents. Questionnaires are set for  respondents to dig information about how their answers contain choices. Two and three varies alternatives are presented to see  respondent choice feedback when a third inferior alternative is available. The result shows respondent tendency to switch options when status quo becomes a  reference point.

scholarly journals Fourth Amendment Textualism

2019 ◽  
pp. 233-283
Author(s):  
Jeffrey Bellin
Keyword(s):  
Fourth Amendment ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Third Party ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Reasonable Expectation ◽  
Part Formula ◽  
The Past ◽  
Police Investigation ◽  
The Status ◽  
Definition Of

The Fourth Amendment’s prohibition of “unreasonable searches” is one of the most storied constitutional commands. Yet after decades of Supreme Court jurisprudence, a coherent definition of the term “search” remains surprisingly elusive. Even the justices know they have a problem. Recent opinions only halfheartedly apply the controlling “reasonable expectation of privacy” test and its wildly unpopular cousin, “third-party doctrine,” with a few justices in open revolt. These fissures hint at the Court’s openness to a new approach. Unfortunately, no viable alternatives appear on the horizon. The justices themselves offer little in the way of a replacement. And scholars’ proposals exhibit the same complexity, subjectivity, and illegitimacy that pervade the status quo. This Article proposes a shift toward simplicity. Buried underneath the doctrinal complexity of the past fifty years is a straightforward constitutional directive. A three-part formula, derived from the constitutional text, deftly solves the Fourth Amendment “search” conundrums that continue to beguile the Court. This textualist approach offers clarity and legitimacy, both long missing from “search” jurisprudence. And by generating predictable and sensible answers, the proposed framework establishes clear boundaries for police investigation while incentivizing legislators to add additional privacy protections where needed.

scholarly journals Emerging semantics to link phenotype and environment

PeerJ ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. e1470 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne E. Thessen ◽  
Daniel E. Bunker ◽  
Pier Luigi Buttigieg ◽  
Laurel D. Cooper ◽  
Wasila M. Dahdul ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Data Model ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Computing Methods ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Proof Of Concept ◽  
Biological Ontologies ◽  
Fundamental Goal ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
The Status ◽  
Link Data

Understanding the interplay between environmental conditions and phenotypes is a fundamental goal of biology. Unfortunately, data that include observations on phenotype and environment are highly heterogeneous and thus difficult to find and integrate. One approach that is likely to improve the status quo involves the use of ontologies to standardize and link data about phenotypes and environments. Specifying and linking data through ontologies will allow researchers to increase the scope and flexibility of large-scale analyses aided by modern computing methods. Investments in this area would advance diverse fields such as ecology, phylogenetics, and conservation biology. While several biological ontologies are well-developed, using them to link phenotypes and environments is rare because of gaps in ontological coverage and limits to interoperability among ontologies and disciplines. In this manuscript, we present (1) use cases from diverse disciplines to illustrate questions that could be answered more efficiently using a robust linkage between phenotypes and environments, (2) two proof-of-concept analyses that show the value of linking phenotypes to environments in fishes and amphibians, and (3) two proposed example data models for linking phenotypes and environments using the extensible observation ontology (OBOE) and the Biological Collections Ontology (BCO); these provide a starting point for the development of a data model linking phenotypes and environments.

Why agroecology is a dead end for Africa

2019 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 113-116 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nassib Mugwanya
Keyword(s):  
Social Justice ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Clear Understanding ◽  
Farming Practices ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Dead End ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
The Status ◽  
Economic Reality ◽  
African Agriculture

The urgent need to transform Africa’s agriculture has led to a rise in advocacy for more holistic and sustainable models such as agroecology. However, in the name of working within the limits of nature, and of social justice, proponents of agroecology in Africa are—knowingly or unknowingly—pushing for the status quo. Moreover, the anti-corporate, anti-industrial sentiment informing the arguments of agroecology is likewise disconnected from the current economic reality in many African countries. Whatever one’s position, arguments about what path Africa’s agriculture should follow need to be based on a clear understanding of the starting point, on the reality of African agriculture as it exists today. The agroecological model advocated is too restrictive to transform the sector. At best, it seeks not to transform, but to trap farmers in the poverty of their current unproductive farming practices.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document