Nearly 12,000 people participated in the study. The researchers replicated four classic experiments to investigate whether people think more abstractly when events are perceived as distant in time, space, socially, or in terms of probability. This is the central idea of Construal Level Theory. The results consistently showed substantially weaker effects than previous research, and in several cases, the effects were absent entirely.
Open science in practice
The study is based on the principles of open science, an approach that has emerged in response to the so-called replication crisis in fields such as psychology. Previous research has shown that many classic findings have been difficult to replicate, which has led to discussions about the reliability of research.
The current project utilized, among other things, pre-registered analyses, open data, and an international collaboration among 78 independent research laboratories.
“The strength of science lies in the fact that findings are scrutinized, replicated, and re-evaluated as new knowledge emerges. Open science strengthens this process and helps us build a more reliable knowledge base,” says Sofia Calderon, Ph.D. in psychology at the University of Gothenburg.
May Change How the Theory Is Used
Over the past two decades, Construal Level Theory has become one of the most influential theories in social psychology and has been used to understand everything from consumption decisions to climate-related behaviors.
The new findings do not mean that the theory must be abandoned, but the researchers believe it needs to be reevaluated and further tested.
“No one knows exactly what will happen to the theory now. My hope is that other researchers will review our work and engage in discussion with us and others. Thanks to our open approach, anyone can now scrutinize our work,” says Sofia Calderon.
The project was funded by the Swedish Research Council
Link to the study: Effects of Psychological Distance on Mental Abstraction: A Registered Report of Four Tests of Construal-Level Theory