Crossing the virtual boundary: the effect of task-irrelevant environmental cues on task implementation

Task-oriented activities often involve a certain degree of waiting before the actual activities commence. We suggest that seemingly irrelevant situational cues in the task environment, such as queue guides, area carpets, or the location of another person, can serve as virtual boundaries that divide the task system into two categories: inside the system versus outside the system. Results from two laboratory and two field studies show that in-system individuals (i.e., those who have crossed the virtual boundary demarcated by these cues) are more likely than out-system individuals to adopt an implemental mind-set, as manifested by increased immediacy of action initiation, increased persistence in task-oriented behavior, and increased optimism. Further, these effects are attenuated when people are given sufficient extrinsic incentives to fulfill the task.