Under what circumstances do people adopt a choice mindset? Three studies (two preregistered) tested whether higher power leads people to construe others as having more choice. When power was either measured (Study 1) or manipulated (Studies 2 and 3), high-power perceivers viewed others, even low-power others (Study 3), as having more choice than did low-power perceivers. Consequently, high-power individuals blamed others more for poor performance (Studies 1–3), and were more likely to punish them (Studies 1 and 2). The findings document a direct link between power and choice by showing that the psychological consequences of a choice mindset (i.e., greater blame) can be evoked by power and that effects of power (e.g., on blame) can be mediated by perceptions of choice.

人们在什么情况下会采用选择思维方式？三项研究（两项已预先注册）测试了更高的权力是否会导致人们认为他人拥有更多选择。当测量功率（研究1）或操纵功率（研究2和3）时，高功率感知者将其他人，甚至是低功率他人（研究3）视为比低功率感知者更多的选择。因此，高能力的人更多地指责他人表现不佳（研究1-3），并且更有可能惩罚他们（研究1和2）。这些发现通过表明选择心态的心理后果（即更大的责备）可以由权力引起，而权力的影响（例如，对罪责的影响）可以由选择的感知来介导，从而证明了权力与选择之间的直接联系。