Examining the indirect effects of embodied learning on adaptability: The mediating roles of challenge stressors and psychological capital

We examined the efficacy of embodied learning for augmenting leader psychological capital—a latent construct reflecting hope, optimism, self-efficacy, and resilience. To do so, we leveraged the literature on embodied cognition and the challenge-hindrance stressor framework to better understand how involving both the body and mind during learning (i.e., embodied learning) can lead to heightened perceptions of challenge stressors, which then result in greater psychological capital. We also expected that higher levels of psychological capital relate to greater subsequent adaptability on the job. We tested these predictions in two quasi-experimental field studies. Study 1 included a sample of 141 executive MBA students and Study 2 included a sample of 163 working managers. In both studies, the disembodied learning condition consisted of classroom training. The embodied learning condition included an outdoor adventure training component (including an 88 km hiking race and various team challenges) conducted in the Gobi Desert in Study 1 and in a nature park in Study 2. The results of the first study revealed that participants in the embodied learning group experienced higher post-learning psychological capital than those in the disembodied learning group and that psychological capital mediated the relationship between learning approach and peer-rated adaptability 6 months later. Study 2 replicated the positive relationship between embodied learning and post-learning psychological capital and extended it by showing that challenge stressors mediated this relationship.