Effect of Self Accountability on Self Regulatory behaviour - a Quasi Experiment

Abstract

Individual’s accountability to self leads to self regulatory behaviour. A field experiment afforded an opportunity to test this relation, given that external accountability conditions were absent. A single group pre-test/ post-test design was used to test the hypothesis. A group of full time resident management students, n ≈550, take four meals during the day in the institute mess. As a part of experiment, the food wastage in form of leftovers in the plates of subjects was measured. As a pre test, the measurement occurred at two levels. Subjects could see how much they are adding to the total waste by looking at weighing scale placed under a waste basket, and they could also see total waste figure for each of the four meals for the day and a day earlier displayed at a prominent place. After 105 days, the weighing scale under basket was removed, and as post test measurement, the total waste figures for four meals were noted down for another 72 days. A manipulation test indicated that the experiment has the desired effect of invoking self accountability in S’s in the pre test phase, and diluting it in the post test phase. Time series analysis of pre test and post test data indicated that the wastage data decreased in the pre test phase. However, the post test waste data showed an increase over a period of time. The results indicate that accountability conditions like social norms invoke self accountability cognitions leading to self regulatory behaviours in individuals.