Could directly shifting self-doubt mind-set reduce the negative effects of chronic self-doubt?

ABSTRACT

Research has shown negative effects of chronic self-doubt on psychological and performance outcomes. Two experiments were conducted to examine (a) the malleability of the mind-set about self-doubt; and (b) whether shifting to a more positive mind-set reduces the negative effects of self-doubt. Participants in Experiment 1 were randomly assigned to one of two mind-set induction conditions (positive versus negative). A control group was added in Experiment 2, in which we also enhanced the strength and symmetry of the positive and negative mind-set inductions. The results from both experiments showed a significant change in self-doubt mind-set in the hypothesized direction as a result of the mind-set induction. Interestingly, Experiment 2 revealed that priming either positive or negative mind-set diminished the negative self-doubt effects on task engagement, relative to the control group. The findings for the negative mind-set group were counter to the hypothesis but replicated what was observed in Experiment 1.

KEYWORDS:

• Chronic self-doubt
• mind-set induction
• task performance
• task engagement
• psychological well-being

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The data described in this article are openly available in the Open Science Framework at https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/SVMDU.

Open Scholarship

This article has earned the Center for Open Science badges for Open Data and Open Materials through Open Practices Disclosure. The data and materials are openly accessible at https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/SVMDU.

Notes

1. See below for the registration DOI for accessing the research materials and data of both Experiments 1 and 2 on the Open Science Framework (OSF): 10.17605/OSF.IO/SVMDU

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.

Notes on contributors

Qin Zhao

Qin Zhao is a full professor of Psychology at Western Kentucky University (WKU). Her research focuses on (a) how metacognitive beliefs/mindsets impact individuals’ academic and mental health resilience to challenges from within or outside; and (b) how absolute vs. relative standing/status impact individuals’ self-evaluative, affective, and mental health outcomes. She has authored articles in journals such as Journal of Educational Psychology, Educational Psychology Review, Metacognition and Learning, and Learning and Individual Differences.

Samuel Chang

Samuel Chang is an Ernest R. Wish Research Fellow and first-year Ph.D. Student in Accounting at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business. His interests include financial mathematics, actuarial science, and accounting. He has authored articles in journals including Internal Auditing and Fractional Differential Calculus, and he is currently pursuing projects in financial behavior, psychology, and information systems.