CONSTRUAL LEVEL MANIPULATIONS AS THEY INFLUENCE VOLUNTEERISM

Abstract

Acts of self-control rely on an individual’s willingness to set aside immediate desires in favor of more rewarding, but long term goals. Construal-level theory (CLT) suggests that there exists a spectrum between high and low-level construals with each end of the spectrum promoting big-picture, or fine detail thoughts, respectively. Research in this area has consistently shown that high-level construals are effective in promoting actions of self-control. Acts of volunteering are effectively one such act of self-control as they require someone to set aside personal desires in favor of assisting others. The goal of this research was to examine how construal-level manipulations would affect willingness to perform selfless actions. We proposed that high-level construals would lead to a greater willingness to perform selfless actions, such as volunteering, as compared to low-level construals. Additionally, we proposed that high-level construals would lead to higher ratings of communally oriented values, such as benevolence and universalism. Similarly, we proposed that low-level construal would lead to higher ratings of selfish values, such as personal power and achievement. Participants’ construal levels were manipulated. They then rated the importance of certain values, followed by a task which asked participants to indicate their willingness to participate in a volunteer task. The manipulation of construal-level was not found to influence the willingness of participants to volunteer in a campus cleanup event. Additionally, the manipulation of construal-level did not influence the way that participants rated specific sets of values.