Power, success, failure and estimation of own achievements

Three studies focused on estimation of present and future achievements after success and failure in relation to differences in status. The results of Study 1 and 3 showed that high power participants rated actual and future achievements in a more optimistic way, and expected higher quality of life in the future than low power participants. The results of Study 2 and 3 showed that evaluation of own achievements by low power participants, compared to high power participants, was more dependent on the obtained feedback (positive or negative). The studies demonstrated that possessing power leads to a more positive evaluation of own achievements and sensitizes people to the feedback information but only in those domains which are consistent with content of the information. In the high power group neither positive nor negative feedback had any influence on estimation of own achievements in other domains, such as social status or quality of life. peerReviewed publishedVersion