Apr 27, 2017 By Eileen ChouNir HalevyAdam D. GalinskyJ. Keith Murnighan The Goldilocks Contract: The Synergistic Benefits of Combining Structure and Autonomy for Persistence, Creativity, and Cooperation Contracts are commonly used to regulate a wide range of interactions and relationships. Yet relying on contracts as a mechanism of control often comes at a cost to motivation. Integrating theoretical perspectives from psychology, economics, and organizational theory, we explore this control-motivation dilemma inherent in contracts and present the Contract-Autonomy-Motivation-Performance-Structure (CAMPS) model, which highlights the synergistic benefits of combining structure and autonomy. The model proposes that subtle reductions in the specificity of a contract’s language can boost autonomy, which increases intrinsic motivation and improves a range of desirable behaviors. Nine field and laboratory experiments found that less specific contracts increased task persistence, creativity, and cooperation, both immediately and longitudinally, because they boosted autonomy and intrinsic motivation. These positive effects, however, only occurred when contracts provided sufficient structure. Furthermore, the effects were limited to control-oriented clauses (i.e., legal clauses), and did not extend to coordination-oriented clauses (i.e., technical clauses). That is, there were synergistic benefits when a contract served as a scaffold that combined structure with general clauses. Overall, the current model and experiments identify a low-cost solution to the common problem of regulating social relationships: finding the right amount of contract specificity promotes desirable outcomes, including behaviors that are notoriously difficult to contract. The CAMPS model and the current set of empirical findings explain why, when, and how contracts can be used as an effective motivational tool. (PsycINFO Database Record Journal of Personality and Social Psychology Journal of Personality and Social Psychology Eileen Chou Eileen Chou, associate dean for academic affairs and Batten Family Bicentennial Teacher-Scholar Leadership Professor of Public Policy at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy, researches the organizational, social, and psychological forces that shape individual and group behavior in organizational settings. Read full bio Nir Halevy Adam D. Galinsky J. Keith Murnighan Related Content Eileen Chou Once bitten, twice shy: The negative spillover effect of seeing betrayal of trust. Research Our research demonstrates that people who had perceived a recent betrayal were significantly less likely to trust a new entity that shared nominal group membership with the previous trust transgressor. By systematically investigating whether, why, and to what extent betrayal spillover can subsequently contaminate trust development, we present a robust account of the downstream economic and behavioral consequences of observing others who have been betrayed by a similar entity, particularly in the context of charitable organizations. Unpacking the Black box: How inter- and intra-team forces motivate team rationality Research How can we ensure that teams can fulfill their full cognitive potential? This paper explores how team members can be motivated so that, collectively, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Eileen Chou New Associate Dean for Academic Affairs News The Batten School is delighted to announce the appointment of Professor Eileen Chou as associate dean for academic affairs, effective July 1, 2023. Why Americans Feel More Pain News Millions of Americans are suffering from chronic pain linked to troubled childhoods, loneliness, and a host of other pressures on working families. Economic insecurity is also associated with more pain, according to a study by Batten Professor Eileen Chou cited in a New York Times series exploring the interrelated crisis impacting working-class America.
Eileen Chou Eileen Chou, associate dean for academic affairs and Batten Family Bicentennial Teacher-Scholar Leadership Professor of Public Policy at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy, researches the organizational, social, and psychological forces that shape individual and group behavior in organizational settings. Read full bio
Once bitten, twice shy: The negative spillover effect of seeing betrayal of trust. Research Our research demonstrates that people who had perceived a recent betrayal were significantly less likely to trust a new entity that shared nominal group membership with the previous trust transgressor. By systematically investigating whether, why, and to what extent betrayal spillover can subsequently contaminate trust development, we present a robust account of the downstream economic and behavioral consequences of observing others who have been betrayed by a similar entity, particularly in the context of charitable organizations.
Unpacking the Black box: How inter- and intra-team forces motivate team rationality Research How can we ensure that teams can fulfill their full cognitive potential? This paper explores how team members can be motivated so that, collectively, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
Eileen Chou New Associate Dean for Academic Affairs News The Batten School is delighted to announce the appointment of Professor Eileen Chou as associate dean for academic affairs, effective July 1, 2023.
Why Americans Feel More Pain News Millions of Americans are suffering from chronic pain linked to troubled childhoods, loneliness, and a host of other pressures on working families. Economic insecurity is also associated with more pain, according to a study by Batten Professor Eileen Chou cited in a New York Times series exploring the interrelated crisis impacting working-class America.