Events

Ms. Eunjeong Kwon
Ph.D. Candidate
Department of Management and Entrepreneurship
W. P. Carey School of Business
Arizona State University

Given evidence that mentally preparing for anticipated work demands generally benefits employees, it is reasonable to expect that preparatory mental rehearsals—mental simulations of upcoming work-related interactions with colleagues—would similarly be beneficial to employees. However, adopting the looming vulnerability perspective (Riskind, 1997) brings into focus a more complete view of the implications of these mental rehearsals. We suggest that although preparatory mental rehearsals may promote interpersonal effectiveness, they may also create a distorted sense of urgency and time pressure regarding the upcoming work interactions, which can result in intrapersonal costs, such as social anxiety, and in turn, depletion. Across three studies, including an experience sampling field study (Study 1), a laboratory study (Study 2), and a controlled laboratory experiment (Study 3), we find support for our hypotheses that there are interpersonal benefits as well as intrapersonal costs to preparatory mental rehearsals at work, and that the intrapersonal costs are particularly prominent for individuals with lower power. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.