Pat is the manager of a large project that has been underway for the last eight months. It has now become apparent that, due to various external factors, the project is unlikely to succeed. Even though the best option would be to withdraw from the project, Pat continues to pump money and resources into it in the hope that the project's prospects will change. He reasons that he doesn't want all those months of hard work to go to waste. This is an example of the ________.