"I did it before, so I can do it again(?)": Recalling success, expectations of future success and the impact of ease-of-retrieval and attributions.

Abstract

It is widely assumed that recalling past success raises expectations of future success ("expectancy"). However, experimental research investigating that assumption has generated mixed results. The present study examined two (meta)cognitive factors that may play a role during "recall success" interventions: ease-of-retrieval (i.e. the ease/difficulty with which success is recalled) and causal attributions (i.e. the factors to which the success is attributed). Three experiments were conducted with English-speaking adults across the world. After being asked to recall either attraction "success(es)" or attraction "failure(s)," participants reported the extent to which they expected to attract someone in the future ("expectancy"). Results suggest that difficulty in retrieving examples of success and failure to attribute recalled success to stable/general factors have a negative impact on expectancy. Moreover, individuals with low self-perceived mate value are apparently more likely to experience difficulty-in-retrieval and less likely to attribute (attraction) success to stable/general factors. Unless ease-of-retrieval and attributions are addressed, those most in need of an expectancy boost may not benefit from "recall success" interventions.