More from the Author

• Editorial | Harvard Business Review (website) | September 20, 2019

  Why Asking for Advice Is More Effective Than Asking for Feedback

  Jaewon Yoon, Hayley Blunden, Ariella Kristal and A.V. Whillans

  Conventional wisdom says you should ask your colleagues for feedback. However, research suggests that feedback often has no (or even a negative) impact on our performance. This is because the feedback we receive is often too vague—it fails to highlight what we can improve on or how to improve. New research suggests a better approach. Across four experiments—including a field experiment conducted in an executive education classroom—researchers found that people received more effective input when they asked for advice rather than feedback.

  Keywords: feedback; advice; advice seeking; feedback culture; advice taking; Interpersonal Communication;

  Citation:

  Yoon, Jaewon, Hayley Blunden, Ariella Kristal, and A.V. Whillans. "Why Asking for Advice Is More Effective Than Asking for Feedback." Harvard Business Review (website) (September 20, 2019).  View Details

  CiteView Details Register to Read

  Related

• Article | Science Advances

  Valuing Time Over Money Predicts Happiness After a Major Life Transition: A Preregistered Longitudinal Study of Graduating Students

  A.V. Whillans, Lucia Macchia and Elizabeth Dunn

  When making major life decisions—such as choosing what to do after graduation—is it better to prioritize time or money? In a pre-registered longitudinal study of 1,232 graduating university students, respondents who valued time over money chose more intrinsically rewarding activities and were happier one year after graduation. These results remained significant controlling for baseline happiness, potential confounds such as materialism and socioeconomic status, and when using alternative model specifications. These findings extend prior research by showing that the tendency to value time over money is not only predictive of daily consumer choices but also of major life decisions. Additionally, this research clarifies the direction of the observed associations between valuing time and money and happiness, showing that valuing time over money uniquely contributes to well-being, in part by encouraging intrinsic motivation. Together, this work sheds new light on whether, when, and how valuing time shapes happiness.

  Keywords: Time use; money; trade-offs; Career Decisions; Time Management; Money; Happiness; Values and Beliefs; Personal Development and Career;

  Citation:

  Whillans, A.V., Lucia Macchia, and Elizabeth Dunn. "Valuing Time Over Money Predicts Happiness After a Major Life Transition: A Preregistered Longitudinal Study of Graduating Students." Science Advances 5, no. 9 (September 2019).  View Details

  CiteView Details Read Now

  Related

• Working Paper | HBS Working Paper Series | 2019

  Framing Feedback Giving as Advice Giving Yields More Critical and Actionable Input

  Jaewon Yoon, Hayley Blunden, Ariella Kristal and A.V. Whillans

  When looking to improve workplace performance, people often seek third-party input by asking for feedback. However, we propose that asking for feedback might not be the most effective way of soliciting critical and actionable input. We offer a simple yet powerful alternative: ask for advice instead. Across four experiments (N=1,438), including a field experiment, we show that people offer more critical and actionable input when they are asked to provide advice (versus feedback)—even when they are asked to provide comments on identical output. When asked to provide feedback (versus advice), givers focus too much on evaluating the recipient, which undermines their ability to generate constructive (i.e. critical and actionable) input. Our findings suggest that framing feedback provision as advice provision may be a promising way of soliciting constructive third-party input.

  Keywords: feedback; advice; personal development; evaluative mindset; Performance Improvement; Personal Development and Career;

  Citation:

  Yoon, Jaewon, Hayley Blunden, Ariella Kristal, and A.V. Whillans. "Framing Feedback Giving as Advice Giving Yields More Critical and Actionable Input." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 20-021, August 2019.  View Details

  CiteView Details Read Now

  Related