Navigating emotions: the impact of frustration on ethical decision making

Abstract

Urban spaces serve as a common ground for a diverse array of individuals, all of whom utilize the amenities provided within them. These amenities, commonly referred to as civic amenities, are considered public goods intended for the benefit of the entire populace. Typically, in many countries, including India, these amenities are administered by the civic authorities, such as municipal corporations, which are closely affiliated with the government. However, citizen participation in the planning process for these civic amenities is notably absent. Despite the authorities' responsibility for planning and disbursing civic amenities, public perception is often disregarded. Integrating public sentiment into the planning process could offer insights into the emotional dimensions of civic motivation, engagement, and collective decision-making within urban contexts (Hendawy, Gonzalez, & Elwahy, 2022). Neglecting public sentiment can result in public dissatisfaction and pose challenges during the implementation phase (Pánek & Benediktsson, 2017). This study aims to explore the influence of public emotion on decision-making processes within the civic space. Frustration emerges as a prevalent emotional experience among citizens, particularly when they encounter barriers to accessing civic amenities or when urban spaces lack inclusivity. As a negative affect emotion, frustration can have far-reaching consequences, including adverse effects on individual health, engagement in unsavoury or unethical behaviours within the civic realm, and overall feelings of discontent. For this study, the Customer Experience Quality (EXQ) scale developed by Maklan and Klaus (2011) was modified to facilitate a deeper understanding of citizens' encounters while seeking access to civic amenities. Frustration and anger, identified as negative emotions within the civic environment, were manipulated and examined against a control group. Their impact was analysed through vignettes with choices between ethical and unethical courses of action. To clarify additional variability in decision making processes, individual differences such as personality traits, participants' prior experiences, and trait optimism were examined as potential moderators in the relationship between experience and emotion, and subsequently, between emotion and decision-making. To ensure the adaptation of the EXQ scale to the context of civic experiences and expectations, focus group discussions were conducted, resulting in the development of a novel scale termed the Human Interface. Subsequently, a moderated mediation model was run to assess the effects of antecedents via mediators of frustration and anger, in conjunction with personality factors and optimism serving as primary-stage moderators. Furthermore, a secondary-stage moderation effect of emotion regulation and locus of control on ethical decision-making was investigated. The results showed the significant impact of frustration on ethical decision-making, with anger and frustration exhibiting distinct effects. Cognitive reappraisal emerged as a crucial factor moderating the relationship between frustration and decision-making. Personality variables, except for agreeableness, did not directly impact decision making but demonstrated significant indirect effects, suggesting partial mediation. The discussion highlights the significance of considering emotional regulation techniques and individual differences in understanding decision-making processes related to civic amenities, while discussing future directions.