Does task-related identified regulation moderate the sociometer effect? A study of performance feedback, perceived inclusion, and state self-esteem

The aim of this study was to understand the processes explaining the effects of private performance feedback (success vs. failure) on state self-esteem from the stance of sociometer theory and self-determination theory. We investigated whether or not the effect of private performance feedback on state self-esteem was mediated by perceived inclusion as a function of participants’ level of task-related identified regulation (i.e., importance of the activity for oneself). Ninety participants were randomly assigned to one of the following three conditions: failure, success, or control. Our regression analyses based on both original and bootstrap samples indicate that perceived inclusion does not mediate the effect of feedback on state self-esteem for individuals high in task-related identified regulation. Such an effect only operates for individuals low in task-related identified regulation. In sum, our results show that the perceived inclusion process proposed by sociometer theory applies more when individuals find that the activity is less important for them (i.e., identified regulation).