(Don’t) mind the gap? Information gaps compound curiosity yet also feed frustration at work

Abstract

Although information gaps frequently occur in the workplace, surprisingly little organizational research considered their psychological consequences for employees. We refine the information gap theory by integrating it with the cognitive-affective processing system (CAPS) framework to argue that work-related information gaps constitute a double-edged sword for work engagement because they elicit both specific curiosity and frustration. We find support for our cognitive-affective process model of information gaps across two experience-sampling studies and an experimental study. In Study 1 (74 employees, 270 days), we validated a work-related information gap scale to empirically disentangle information gaps from specific curiosity. In Study 2 (107 employees, 719 days), information gaps were positively associated with specific curiosity and frustration, which in turn had differential effects on work engagement. In Study 3 (405 employees across two conditions), we provide causal support for our model and rule out alternative cognitive (i.e., boredom) and affective (i.e., thriving) mechanisms.