High Impact Practices Student Showcase Spring 2024
Effects of List Making and Conscientiousness on Optimistic Time Predictions
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Course Code
PSY
Course Number
4215C
Faculty/Instructor
Dr. Matthew Chin
Faculty/Instructor Email
matthew.chin@ucf.edu
Abstract, Summary, or Creative Statement
The Planning Fallacy describes the tendency of people to underestimate the time it takes to complete a task. One way to reduce the likelihood of falling victim to the Planning Fallacy is by “unpacking” the task, which involves writing a to-do list of the steps required to complete the task. Conscientiousness is highly correlated with time management. We administered a set of two surveys. The first measured conscientiousness using the CCM-5, and the second presented a scenario where the respondent had to imagine they had to get ready for a date by a specific time. Each participant then estimated how much time it would take for them to get ready, but only one group was first directed to make a list of tasks that involve getting ready for the date. We hypothesized that participants who were in the unpacked condition would provide longer time predictions than those in the packed condition, and that participants who score higher on the conscientiousness measure will also provide longer time predictions. Results correspond with the hypothesis, where high conscientiousness results in greater time estimates than low conscientiousness. However, packing and unpacking had no impact on mean time estimates. Overall, results suggest those high in conscientiousness may be less vulnerable to the planning fallacy since they tend to exhibit longer time predictions. This study is the first of its kind in that it assesses personality factors ability to fight against susceptibility to the Planning Fallacy.
Keywords
planning fallacy; conscientiousness; optimistic time predictions; Big Five; time management; OCEAN; personality; experiment; list making; unpacking
Recommended Citation
Ryon, Zoe and Schmidt, Ella, "Effects of List Making and Conscientiousness on Optimistic Time Predictions" (2024). High Impact Practices Student Showcase Spring 2024. 36.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/hip-2024spring/36